Chapter Text
It’s a vile sight. The creature’s legs twitch as its whole body seizes up, shaking with leftover adrenaline from the fight. Some type of inky liquid gushes out from the puncture wounds lined up and down its disfigured form, pooling onto the pavement beneath it.
With a sigh, Akito holds his umbrella out in front of him.
“Take care of this, Kasa-obake.”
One step after another, Toya’s shoes drag across the tiled hallway floor. With his staggered gait, his school shoes had begun to scuff, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.
This is rare, of course, for a boy of his nature.
He finds himself too tired to fret over his clothes, or weakened pace, or heavy breaths. If someone were to pass by, they would surely gasp at the sight of such a poor thing and escort him straight to the infirmary. However, this won’t happen— Toya’s sure of it, since classes have already ended, and no clubs are held in the third floor classrooms.
He couldn’t recall why he had come up there in the first place, head hazy with fog and disjointed memories. With no goal in mind, only an arm wrapped around his cramping stomach, Toya throws a classroom door open.
Rest. I need to… rest…
Stumbling, he falls into the seat of the nearest desk. Something tears with a loud rip, and his hands pressed against his stomach suddenly turn cold as a new sensation blooms into them. Distantly, Toya registers a strange, metallic liquid dribble onto his lips. Still, he’s too tired to care.
Breath escaping him, his head falls onto the wooden desk.
“G… Geh!”
Stirring awake, Toya raises a hand to his forehead, feeling heat radiate onto his palm. Blearily, he blinks his eyes back into focus, staring down at the white mass on the desk.
Oh, I must’ve passed out…
“Geh!” An ivory-colored creature squawks up at him.
Wait…
“What…?” Toya breathes out, slowly sliding the chair back away from the desk with his heels. The thing squeaks along with the chair, shuffling as it’s trying to jump but can’t quite get its stubby legs off of the ground. As he looks down at it, it stares back with wide, expectant eyes. A small tongue hangs lazily out of its jagged mouth as it pants like an excitable puppy, but its overall appearance makes it resemble a turtle more than anything.
It continues to coo at him, bouncing around and wagging its tail. Toya realizes that it’s trying to communicate, and leans forward to softly murmur, “I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you want from me.”
“Geh!”
A weary smile forms on his lips. “I still don’t know what that’s supposed to mean…”
Suddenly, the creature leaps up, landing on Toya’s shoulder and turning to position itself into the nook of his neck. With the sudden movement, Toya stiffens and freezes, but melts into the surprisingly warm affection from it. He had been expecting it to be hard to the touch based on its plastic-like sheen, but finds its skin soft as he cautiously reaches up to secure its position on his shoulder. The only hardened part on it is the shell. It seems to purr at his touch, nuzzling into his neck like a cat would.
“Ah…” Toya ponders out loud, “Maybe I should ask around if anyone knows what this is?” He turns to look out of the window, and startles when he sees the sunset on the horizon. Immediately, he jumps out of the chair and pulls his phone out from his pocket, making the creature whine at the jagged movements. “Sorry, sorry!” He looks over at the animal perched on him– it’s an animal, right? -- and rushes out into the hallway, beelining for the main entrance. If he doesn’t run straight to Vivid Street, he would be late for practice, and then everyone would be upset with him, or worse– worried about him. There’s a noticeable lack of lingering students or faculty left in the school, which Toya finds himself grateful for at the moment, hurrying through the halls with some weird turtle thing squawking on his shoulder.
However, as the boy approaches the more-populated streets outside of the school, he’s taken aback by just how overcrowded all of his surroundings have become. Despite there being a regular amount of passerbys, the area has become infested with creatures, similar but not the same as the one currently chewing on the tips of his hair. As a junior high girl passes by him, a small, bat-like one clinging to the top of her head hisses at him, unhinging its jaw to bear an unnaturally wide row of sharp fangs at him. With a gasp, he stumbles backwards into a man walking nearby. Toya turns to apologize, but the man just grumbles into his phone and trudges away. When he looks back at the schoolgirl, she’s simply carrying on like normal, chatting with her friends as they walk down the street.
In his mind, Toya begins to write a list of observations, trying to grab a hold on this new, strange world he finds himself in.
One, he thinks, everyone else seems to be unaware of these things. After all, both the man and the girl paid no mind to neither the bat on her head nor the turtle on his shoulder.
Two, these things come in a wide variety of species . Of course, the bat and turtle are proof of this as well, but just one scan down the street further exacerbates the point. Some are large, looming, and almost humanoid. Others are tiny, frail, and could be mistaken for strangely colored animals and insects at first glance. Not to mention, the creatures that have no point of reference for comparison, made of abstract shapes and gurgling noises. There seems to be no end to the span of appearance for the creatures.
Three, he pauses as he turns into a familiar alleyway, a shortcut to the park near Vivid Street, some are kind or neutral. Absent-mindedly, he reaches out to hold onto the turtle on his shoulder, worried that its hyper nature will cause it to fall and hurt itself. Others are dangerous. Sharp fangs stand out in his mind, but he notes the long claws and pointed glares he had seen during his walk.
“Hey, Toya! Over here!” A familiar voice shouts out, and Toya startles out of his thoughts. He looks over at An and Kohane, situated at the park’s swing set and waving him over. Briskly, he jogs over to them, making sure to keep the turtle creature balanced on his shoulder. Neither of them seem to regard him any differently, which he notes to himself. So they can’t see these things, either.
Distantly, he wonders if he’s the only one that can. It’s as if he’s stepped through the looking glass,
A faint hissing makes its way to his ears, so he looks over to find the source of the noise. However, he gasps and stumbles back as his gaze trails the sound over to Kohane’s neck, where a white snake has wrapped its long body over her shoulders and around her neck. For a second, he remembers that she owns a pet snake and finds himself relaxing again. However, taking a closer look, he realizes that it can't possibly be her pet. It’s far too long in length, has a pearlescent luster on its scales that catches the sunlight, and has a large, black, spiraling cone at the end of its tail.
“Toya? What’s wrong?” An perks up, digging her feet into the woodchip ground to halt her swinging.
“Um… Ah…” He falters, unsure of how to explain the situation. In fact, he’s unsure if he even wants to divulge any of it, afraid of how they would react to his seemingly sudden insanity. Luckily, the group’s final member decides to make his presence known right at the same moment.
The orange-haired boy claps a hand onto Toya’s empty shoulder, interjecting, “Sorry for running late, I–”
Before he can start to explain, An jumps to her feet and shouts, pointing an accusatory finger straight at him, “What the hell happened to you, Akito?!”
When Toya turns around to look at him, he recoils at the sight of his bloodied and scratched face. The creature on his shoulder makes an indignant squeal as he does.
“Did you get in a fight? What happened?” He quickly frets, looking over the rest of his body for any visible injuries.
“No, I just–” Akito cuts himself off with a huff, wiping a finger across a particularly wide cut on his bottom lip, “I tripped and fell, s’all.”
The group falls into silence for a moment, gawking at the lousy excuse.
“What, into a pit of spikes?” An rolls her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. However, she quickly sobers into a more serious demeanor, prodding, “It looks like your nose was bleeding. Who did this to you?”
“Seriously, no one,” Akito groans, rubbing at his temples. “I ate shit in one of the alleys and banged my nose into the concrete. Are you happy? You wanted me to admit that?” His tone stays light-hearted and teasing, but his teammates still look on with concern-filled eyes.
“Mhm… Fine, whatever,” An sighs, walking back to her partner. “As long as this doesn’t interfere with our music.” The warning is clear, and Akito just mumbles a reassurance back. No one believes him, but that’s fine. As long as no one keeps poking around where they shouldn’t be, it’s fine. Nervous energy shooting through him, Akito rakes a hand through his hair.
“Um, so should we go… there ?” Kohane finally speaks up, slightly raising her hand to grab everyone’s attention. Before responding, everyone takes a moment to scan their surroundings. There’s nobody nearby, but Toya notices a strange, oversized bird– or birdlike thing, he considers– perched on a bench. No one else comments on it.
“Yeah, let’s head over,” An agrees, digging her phone out of her pocket, “We’re behind schedule already.”
As Toya moves to retrieve his own phone, he’s suddenly stopped by his wrist being grabbed. Looking over, Akito’s blood-stained face stares right back. He raises an eyebrow, but Akito seems to stare straight through him. The girls already left for the SEKAI, so he can’t turn to them for help.
“...Akito?” He tries, and the other boy seems to shock out of whatever catatonic state he had entered.
He coughs, then starts, “Are you doing okay, Toya?”
Caught off-guard, Toya swallows down a noise of shock. He knows that he isn’t the best actor, but surely Akito couldn’t have picked up on his ambivalence this quickly…
“Y– Yeah,” he responds, but the simple word feels like it gets stuck between his teeth as he forces it out. A pit grows in his stomach as Akito bristles and looks off to the side, definitely hesitant to believe him so easily.
Still, he nods back, shooting Toya a warm smile. “Alright, but know that you can always tell me if there’s anything bothering you.”
Toya has to stop himself from reaching up to adjust the creature clinging onto his shoulder. “I know, Akito. Thanks.” He tries to return the kind smile, but finds himself fighting back a cringe when the turtle squawks right into his ear.
Awkwardly, Akito waves his phone in the air. “We should probably go before An kicks me in the shins.”
With a soft chuckle, Toya hums, “Yeah, probably.”
Panting as he bends down to grab his water, Toya shakes the sweat out of his hair. To his left, Akito sits, fidgeting with his phone and he looks over the footage they just recorded from their practice.
“I have to head back now!” Kohane announces, “I promised my dad I would be home early tonight, so I can’t stay any longer.” She looks down, phone ready in her hand to pause their song.
“Aw, that’s a shame,” Miku laments, “Meiko just added some new mocha drink or whatever to the menu.”
“It’s fine, we can try it out together another day!” An chimes in, not wanting her partner to feel guilty for missing out. “Practice is over anyway, so you can leave.”
As he watches An and Miku send Kohane off, Toya wordlessly sips on his water. The turtle creature somehow followed him to the SEKAI, so he had set it down along with his bag in order to practice without balancing an entire organism on his shoulder. However, this obviously upset the thing, because it spent the whole time whining and pacing around his backpack, which still served as a distraction. Now, free from his work, the creature bounces excitedly around Toya, trying to grab his attention. He tries not to look at it, afraid that it will become even more of a nuisance if he shows it any regard. Making his friends think he’s crazy is the last thing he wants, or needs, right now.
Maybe I am crazy, a voice pokes from the back of his brain, it’s not like anyone else seems to see these things.
He tries to shake the thought away, looking down into his water bottle. However, a new voice pipes up, jolting Toya back to attention.
“Hey, are we staying for that mocha drink?” A deep, gruff voice asks, somewhat muffled. Toya looks over in the direction of the sound, he only sees Akito sitting next to his own backpack.
Oh, great, he mumbles to himself, now I’m hearing things as well.
Curious, he peers over, looking for the source of the new voice. Based on the lack of reaction from anyone else, he figures it’s another one of the weird creatures suddenly plaguing his world.
“Don’t ignore me!” It barks out. Becoming frantic, Toya’s eyes scan through the area around Akito. When he lands on the open zipper of Akito’s backpack, he bites back a scream when a single bloodshot eye peers back at him.
A retracted umbrella sits in the bag, the owner of the eye.
Four, Toya notes to himself, some of them can talk.
“Oi, Akito!” It hisses as if it’s trying to be quiet, but is still too loud to go unnoticed by the other boy. “Your friend’s being a creep.”
“ Shut the fuck up! ” Akito whispers back, pointing a glare towards his backpack.
It feels like the gears running Toya’s brain shutter and break, leaving his mind blank despite the overwhelming information he’s just been given.
Akito must catch him staring, though, because a blush quickly tints over his face. After clearing his throat, he stands up, picking up his bag. “Are you staying?” He asks, directed at Toya.
“Um…” He hesitates, still reeling from the previous interaction, “N– No, I should go…” He can’t stay any longer. His chest feels like it’s being constricted, and for a moment he wonders if Kohane’s snake got left behind and has found its way to him.
“Yeah, I’m gonna head out, too,” he mutters, pulling out his phone. However, before pausing the song, he shouts to the girls talking in the street, announcing their departure.
“Alright, stay safe!” Miku waves them off. As An starts to yell some taunt at them, Akito quickly tugs onto the other boy, bringing them both back to the real world.
The only light lining their surroundings is that of the moon and some distant streetlamps. Toya looks over at his partner, watching him zip up his backpack all the way.
Does he know? Does he know that I know?
“Geh…” The turtle whines from his shoulder, having returned to its perched position.
“Hey, let me walk you home,” Akito insists. Even in the dim light, Toya can see the tenacity lining his features. There’s no way he’ll be allowed to refuse.
So, he nods back, humming in agreement. Seemingly satisfied, Akito grins and turns around, leading them out of the park. It’s later than their usual end time for practice, since they had to make up for the late start. As such, they’ve found themselves walking down a much darker and emptier street than usual.
“Hey, is your dad gonna be mad that you’re getting home so late?” Akito asks, peering over his shoulder to meet his partner’s eyes. Toya tilts his head, confused by the out-of-nowhere question.
“Probably? It’s not like him being mad at me is anything new, though,” he mumbles, holding a hand up to his chin.
“Mmm…” Akito voices, “I guess.”
“ Just ask! ” The hoarse voice from earlier croaks, muffled by the backpack but still loud enough to resound through the alleyway they’ve turned down. In response, Akito only grits his teeth and tugs at his backpack’s straps.
Concern growing, Toya’s about to bite the bullet and plead with the other boy to just tell him what’s going on, why they’re the only ones that can see these things, but he’s stopped by Akito suddenly throwing his arm out to block him from stepping forward, slamming into his chest.
“Guu!” The turtle cries as it’s knocked from its spot at his shoulder by the force. Without any thought, Toya dives onto the floor to pick it back up, nestling the creature into his arms.
“Toya, run!” Akito barks, not looking down at the two on the ground. Instead, he throws his bag off of his back, zipping it open and ripping the umbrella out in one fell swoop. He slides the staff forward, letting the canopy shoot open like a flower in bloom. Taking a defensive stance, he swings the open umbrella over his shoulder. The same unblinking, bloodshot eye glowers down at Toya, a long tongue flicking out towards him. It moans out a strange, gurgled chuckle at the frightened boy below him.
Involuntarily, he whimpers, clutching the turtle-thing closer to him. Somehow, he can’t help but feel protective over the little guy, despite it mostly being a point of great confusion and annoyance so far for the boy.
However, his fear only grows when he looks past the umbrella, past Akito standing above him.
A giant, monstrous being towers over the both of them. It looks human in shape, but it’s covered in a flowing, inky substance that obscures its true form and makes it fluctuate in figure. If the seeping liquid didn’t occasionally trickle over to reveal pure bone underneath, Toya would have thought it was just made out of ink entirely.
Akito said to run, but…
Toya sits cowering on the cool ground, only able to huddle over his own creature as a form of makeshift protection. His legs swell with an icy fuzziness, and he realizes that there’s no way he can escape without getting himself, or worse, Akito, killed. So, he sits, curled up and frozen in place, on the ground. The umbrella’s tongue curls, dropping a pool of saliva in front of Toya’s prone body.
In a sudden motion, Akito swings the umbrella back around to the front, thrusting it forth as if it were a fencing sabre. Its tongue swipes forward, licking an entire section off the inky liquid off of the figure. In its wake, a clear, gelatinous mass with clean bones floating in it is left behind.
“There, a weak point!” The umbrella croons.
“I can see that,” Akito groans back, retracting the canopy back to the staff. Looking closer, Toya sees a small, black mass nestled between some of the bones. That must be it, he figures.
In a blur, Akito rushes forward, lunging at the core between the bones. However, the creature changes its shape to dodge, morphing to create a hole that the tip of his umbrella jabs straight through. Unsuspecting, Akito trips, and it takes advantage of his vulnerability to form a large arm that swipes at him, sending him flying to the ground at Toya’s side.
“Akito!” Toya exclaims, flinching back from the impact. Aimlessly, he raises a shaky hand towards him, unsure of how to help.
The other boy only groans in response, fumbling to pick his umbrella back up. “Didn’t I tell you to run?” He grumbles as he forces himself to stand back up, pushing bloody palms against uneven concrete. The right sleeve of his sweatshirt was torn open in the scuffle, leaving an open gash in plain sight.
“I– I can’t,” Toya shudders, leaving the “not without you” unsaid.
Grunting, Akito readies himself to defend again. The ink-covered creature pounces at the two boys. Moving to cover Toya, Akito holds his umbrella forth as if bunting a baseball off of it. When its hand makes contact, the creature recoils with a hiss, slinking back down into the shadows of the alleyway.
“Oh, hell no!” Akito shouts, sprinting after it, “You’re not leaving!”
With a huff, he pulls the umbrella behind his shoulder, sharp edge of the ferrule pointed straight at the weak point. Pointing two fingers ahead with his free arm, he narrows in on the core’s new position, and exerts the rest of his strength to hurl the umbrella right into it.
As the tip punctures the creature, it roars out a gurgling cry. Slowly, the ink curdles over itself, leaving the monster reduced to a pile of black goo.
Suddenly, the exhaustion and blood loss catches up with Akito in one instance, leaving him with a dizzy headrush. His body hits the ground before he realizes he’s even falling, leaving his palms covered in blood and black ink.
“A– Akito!” Toya gasps, scrambling over to help his partner up.
“Shit,” he hisses, letting himself get raised back to his feet. Still faint, he staggers and leans against the other boy to stay upright. “We should… go to my house,” he mutters, wincing as his cut-up arm brushes against his sweatshirt.
“Geez, at least take him out for dinner first,” the umbrella heckles, to which Akito glares down at it.
“Okay, okay,” Toya nods rapidly, trying his best not to panic over his seemingly dying best friend. “Here, wrap your arm around my neck,” he offers, moving Akito’s limp body into a better position to walk with.
“Geh!” The turtle-thing whines at his feet, squinting its eyes up at the boys.
“I’m sorry, but he needs my shoulder more than you do right now,” Toya apologizes, shaking his head to get the point across. The creature lilts with another warbled cry, but doesn’t make any further moves to bother him.
Akito coughs into Toya’s jacket, so he pulls him closer. However, Akito hisses at the sudden movement, and buries his head into his chest.
“Alright, let’s go,” Toya voices, a warning to his injured partner that he’s going to be moved again. Feeling him nod against his jacket, Toya starts to usher the boy out of the alleyway.
Stepping up to the door of the Shinonome household, Akito detaches himself from Toya’s side. Stumbling forward, he fishes a key out of his pocket and unlocks the door.
“Ah, should you be moving by yourself already?” Toya frets, watching the turtle creature hop around to try and reclaim its rightful position on his shoulder.
“It’s fine,” Akito mumbles, “I just needed a moment to regain my strength. I’m fine.”
Toya looks over his body. The giant gash on his arm has only become more grotesque under the porch lights, and there’s still open scratches and black ink scattered over his skin. Still, he nods, wanting to trust his partner, “If you say so…”
As Akito throws the door open, the turtle presses against Toya’s leg, hitting him in the shin. Sighing, he bends down to pick the creature up, letting it climb out of his arms and back onto his shoulder. He follows after Akito, closing the door behind him as he enters the house.
“Geez, you look like shit,” a girl’s voice remarks as they step into the kitchen area. At the counter, a brown-haired girl dressed in a Kamiyama High uniform stands, grabbing a plate from a cupboard. However, when Toya steps into view to introduce himself, she gasps, jumping back. “Christ, Akito, you could’ve told me you were bringing someone over!”
“Why does it matter? I don’t need your permission,” he contends, walking past her to set his umbrella down and open a different cupboard. A host of medical supplies sits in it. Reaching up for an antiseptic and bandages, Akito squints at the strain put on his injured arm.
“It’s still nice to know so I’m not standing in the kitchen in my school uniform when you show up,” she huffs, rolling her eyes. However, she turns to Toya and shoots him a sweet smile, brashly different from her prior appearance. “I’m Ena, his sister. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Toya Aoyagi,” he greets back, “Akito’s mentioned you a few times before. It’s nice to finally meet you, as well.”
Behind them, Akito hisses as he pours antiseptic onto his arm. Both of them scream, but Ena rushes forward before Toya can even start to move.
“Don’t dump the whole bottle on your cut! Are you crazy?!” She chastises, snatching the bottle from his hand. “If you’re gonna be dumb, then I’m cleaning your wounds for you. How did this even happen?”
Akito exhales a heavy sigh, sitting down on the counter to let his sister properly clean his cuts. “Ran into two separate Marionettes today. I think they’re getting worse.”
Ena grabs a towel, pressing the lid of the antiseptic against it. “Seriously? Two in one day?”
“Yeah, and earlier than usual. One was in the afternoon, and the other was just a bit ago. We came straight here after killing it,” he explains, cringing when she presses the cold towel against his arm.
“That’s bad,” she mumbles, “Are you going to tell dad?”
“Probably,” he nods, but bites his lip as he looks to the floor. Then, he quickly adds, “When he’s back from his trip, though.”
“But if they’re getting worse…” Ena warns, voice low. Satisfied with her cleaning, she moves to unravel a bandage from its spool.
“If I call him he’s just gonna yell at me for interrupting his time off,” Akito challenges with a huff. Once Ena finishes adjusting the wrap, he moves his shoulder in a circle to test out his arm’s movement.
She clicks her tongue, leaning against the counter. “Yeah, you’re right,” she sighs, looking defeated.
“Um…” Toya finally speaks up, but falters when the siblings turn to look at him in unison. “Can you guys… explain what’s… going on?”
“Shit, right!” Akito blurts out, jumping back down to his feet. “Your Zingai just formed today, didn’t it?”
“My… what?”
At this, Ena whistles, looking quite amused by Toya’s response. “Good luck to you!” She cackles, clapping a hand against Akito’s back. She hops onto the counter where her brother previously sat, placing her hands on her chin with a cheshire grin.
Akito groans, rubbing his eyes. “You don’t need to stay here, y’know?” He glares at Ena. “Don’t you have to get on call with your little group soon anyway?”
“Mm-mm!” Ena shakes her head, swinging her feet. “Yuki hasn’t been feeling well, so we took tonight off.”
“So you’re just gonna sit here and laugh at me trying to explain all of this shit to Toya, then?”
“Mhm!”
“And you’re not going to help?”
“Nope!”
The two stare at each other, waiting for the other to back down and go on with their day. At the opposite side of the room, Toya just looks on, shuffling in place.
Finally, Akito breaks, turning back to his partner. With a sigh, he begins, “So you don’t know what a Zingai is? You’ve never seen them before?”
“No, it just started this afternoon,” Toya answers, raising an arm to steady the creature on his shoulder.
“What happened when it showed up?” Akito questions, tense demeanor making it feel more like an interrogation.
“Um, that…” Toya hesitates, unsure of how to explain his circumstances. “I didn’t feel well after classes ended, and passed out in a classroom. When I woke back up, this thing was here and I could see the… uh… Zingai?” The unfamiliar word feels wrong on his tongue.
“So nothing happened?” Ena prods, squinting her eyes, “You just felt sick and woke up to your own Zingai?”
Weakly, Toya nods, feeling scrutinized under her gaze. Luckily, Akito speaks up, “Shut up. Didn’t you say you weren’t gonna help?”
“Yeah, but that’s just strange,” Ena comments, “There’s usually a huge emotional catalyst involved when someone starts seeing Zingai. Something like a mental breakdown or huge life-changing event.”
“I know,” Akito snaps, then turns towards Toya with a much more mellow tone, “Did nothing really happen?”
“Nothing that I can recall,” Toya confirms. The creature– or, Zingai– on his shoulder coos quietly.
Both of the siblings fall into silence, seemingly mulling over the information to themselves. Discomfort gnawing at his brain, Toya interjects, “So, how come you guys are so familiar with this… uh… Zingai stuff?”
Akito opens his mouth, but hesitates before finally responding, “The Shinonome family goes way back with Zingai hunting.”
He gasps, “Huh? Hunting?”
“Yeah. You saw in the alley– some Zingai grow violent, and endanger regular people,” he explains, “Most don’t, but…”
“Zingai are born from intense emotions, so it’s only natural that especially intense emotions create violent Zingai,” Ena finishes for him.
“I see…” Toya mumbles, then points to the Zingai on his shoulder, “So this one’s fine, then?”
“Unless you suddenly develop homicidal tendencies and a hatred for everyone around you, you’re safe,” Akito replies, rubbing at his uninjured arm.
“By the way, what’s its name?” Ena leans forward, gushing, “Your Zingai’s so cute, I’m jealous!”
“Ah… Am I supposed to name it?” Toya blushes, looking over at the turtle.
“No, Ena’s just–”
“It’s the polite thing to do!” She interrupts, glaring at her brother. “After all, you basically birthed it.”
“That’s such a weird way to say it,” Akito groans.
“Geh!” The Zingai chirps, leaning into Toya’s neck.
“Is that all it can say?” Ena asks, to which he nods. “How about calling it ‘Gen,’ then? It kinda sounds the same!”
Akito stifles his laughter. “That’s the best you can do?”
“Shut up!” She barks back, “You call yours ‘Kasa-obake,’ that’s literally just calling it what it is!”
“Whatever,” he brushes Ena off, grabbing the umbrella from the counter. “You should stay over tonight. I don’t know how many Marionettes are out tonight, so it’s not safe to walk alone.”
“Are Marionettes a class of dangerous Zingai?” He ponders out loud.
“In a way,” Akito discloses, “We still don’t know where they’re coming from or why there’s so many of them.”
“I think that there’s another Zingai that’s infecting them, kinda like a zombie outbreak type of situation,” Ena notes, “That’s why we’re calling them ‘Marionettes,’ since they’re being controlled somehow.”
“Mm… I see,” Toya nods, raising a hand to pet Gen. It murmurs at the gesture, nuzzling into his touch.
Akito walks past them, calling out, “I’m gonna clean my room up a little, keep Toya company!”
“Why am I on host duty?!” Ena shouts back, then sighs. “So, ah…”
“Um...”
“Do you have any more questions?” She asks, sounding meek. “I suppose this is probably all very weird and overwhelming for you, and Akito’s not the best guide to the Zingai world,” she whispers the last part, giggling.
“Um, I guess…” He thinks over everything that’s happened over the day. His list covers all of the essential observations, and the siblings filled in the rest of the blanks… “What’s your Zingai? You said you named it, right?”
“Oh! Ah…” She shuffles, crossing her legs. “His name is Shun. He’s a little more complicated than most, though. I guess I have a weird situation, like you.” She laughs nervously, rubbing the back of her neck. In the back of his head, he recognizes the gesture as one Akito frequently does.
“Did yours also appear randomly?” He walks forward, leaning against the counter across from her.
“No, well,” she hums, “How should I explain this? When you're born with the ability to see Zingai, it’s much easier to manifest your own. Plus, families like ours will often give their children Zingai to help fight when they’re old enough to start hunting. Like, Kasa-san was given to Akito when he was young. Mine is weird because of the way it works…”
“Oh?” He leans forward, intrigued. “What makes a Zingai weird?”
“Shun and I are… connected. He lives inside of my body, and we talk through my thoughts,” she explains. “He has a physical form, but it hurts both of us if he’s out for too long. It’s unusual for a Zingai not to exist as an individual, plus he’s got an unusual ability, so that’s why he’s considered weird.”
Toya nods, stomaching the new information. The Zingai world is much more complex than I thought…
“Oh, I should probably explain abilities too, huh?” She interrupts his thoughts, continuing when he looks back up at her. “Zingai are able to share their powers with their hosts. For example, Shun lets me predict the future, to some degree,” she explains casually.
“Wait– predict the future? ” He gawks.
“To some degree,” she reiterates, then adds, “It’s complicated.”
Toya pulls the Zingai on his shoulder off, holding it out in front of him to observe. “So, can Gen do anything?”
“That’s for you to figure out,” Ena states, “Some Zingai can, some Zingai can’t.” After a moment of contemplation, she adds, “He’s kinda small, though. Like a cute little turtle-shaped marshmallow! I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s powerless.”
“I hope you didn’t harass him too much,” Akito mumbles, walking back into the kitchen. “Room’s clean. You can follow me.” He nods at Toya.
“What?! That was hardly enough time to properly clean up,” Ena scolds. “I’m sorry about him,” she turns and frowns at Toya.
“Don’t listen to her,” he insists, turning out of the kitchen. Chuckling softly, Toya follows after him, clutching Gen to his chest.
Ena calls after them, “Don’t do anything you wouldn’t want mom finding out about!”