Zeka stepped through the curtain and raised a hand against the sudden sunlight. As his eyes adjusted, the massive estate came into view. A mansion, too big; he thought it was a dream at first glance, but when Genseki tapped his shoulder, Zeka realized it wasn't.
Akari started approaching the mansion's entrance.
Despite being a very big mansion, it was completely hollow. Maybe two or three were living there, given the low presence...
Genseki noticed Zeka had gone somewhere else entirely, his attention caught on nothing at all — or maybe on the scars Genseki hadn't noticed until just now. A scar on his face? How did I not notice that? It's so obvious... He muttered under his breath as he saw how he looked overall; he does look like him in a way, a way he couldn't quite explain.
Akari waved at them; Genseki caught the movement with the corner of his eye as he took a step forward. Zeka didn't move yet; he was frozen in place. The coat was dirty, and his heart was too loud to ignore.
W-Why i-is it so big... I-I-Is there a... The memory of the torture flashed right in front of his eyes; his hand hovered over his left eye. It was covered with his own mid-length black hair. The scar ran from his jaw up to his left eye, and another one crossed his whole face horizontally, right above his nose.
And when he was just about to scream, Hayato's voice cut him off.
"Hey! You should come in too, aren't you one of us now?" Hayato waved at him from the entrance.
Zeka looked at him for a moment; he looked next to him and found Genseki, Akari, and Hayaru. "L-Liona... is missing..." The voice was barely audible; they didn't hear it. Zeka remembered her again: the name she gave him, the name is him now. The coat, the warmth he felt. Zeka's body shivered as he looked at the kids. They're still strangers, I-I don't know them... D-do I even know you enough? He asked himself, knowing no one could answer it.
He didn't move for a whole minute, trying to process what he had even done to deserve this. Why am I getting treated like this? It doesn't make any sense to me... But then, he looked at Genseki again; his hand turned into a fist as he looked up at the sky.
For the first time, he didn't need an answer; he just stepped forward, knowing he could meet her again one day.
Moments later...
Zeka finds himself under the running water; Akari suggested him to shower, and he didn't know what that was, but now he does. He didn't know what the goal was, just to stay under water? Then what? He tried to look around, but his eyes instinctively snapped shut against the water. Why do my eyes close instinctively like that?
He rubbed his eyes heavily so he could see again. He noticed the towel was on the side. After opening one eye, he reached for it. The hair's volume was flat on his skull. Zeka wore the same clothes, but it was clean; maybe someone did it for him.
He walked in the long hallway and noticed how the lights were dim, as if it was giving the place a taste despite being hollow. He looked outside the window; there was no moon to light the forest. If he were out there, he could've gotten lost in seconds.
He stood there for a moment, just watching the forest from the narrow window. He caught a sudden movement out of the corner of his eye. Before he could turn, a hand tapped his shoulder. He froze in place. It was a young girl, not Akari, but she looked about their age. He didn't say anything; he just stood there and glanced at his shoulder where her hands were. Zeka blinked once, and suddenly she was gone. He wasn't surprised, but he was confused. He looked around him, and no one was in sight.
He remembered that Akari said unusual things were happening inside the mansion and to just be careful of it. He walked upstairs and found the group standing by the window and giggling about something. What could they possibly be talking about? Did I miss something?
Zeka approached them, but they didn't notice him.
"This world is so cool, you know that? Yeah, we might be different, but I mean, look at this power we got; we can use it freely and anytime!"
Hayato was excited as he looked at his twin brother to see his reaction.
"But school is still something important, you know that," he exhaled. "And now we can't go back, or they might use us..."
Zeka stood there and watched everything in silence. He didn't know what school was or what they were talking about, but he didn't ask for an explanation; he just tried to understand anyway.