Odyssey

Chapter 7

Tilly had previously climbed into this dumpster to hide while Harper was being slung around by the tentacles of a cursed spirit. Out of many things she could have possibly thought of doing today, it certainly wasn't this. "Tilly! Do something!" Harper screeched. "What do you want me to do?!" Tilly angrily yelled, throwing trash at the cursed spirit.

The spirit was unfazed by the trash, and the tentacles continued to swirl wildly around Harper, causing her to be pulled and twisted in gruesome ways. "Help me... please..." Harper pleaded, her voice dripping with fear. Tilly was powerless to do anything but watch as her friend was tortured by the spirit. She felt utterly helpless.

As Tilly felt her anxiety rising, Harper yelled back, "You need to focus on your cursed energy and release it!"

Tilly's mind felt blank. How could she focus while Harper was being tossed around by the cursed spirit? "But how?" she screamed back.

Harper tried to think as the cursed spirit continued to play with her like a rag doll, swinging her around and twisting her body into unnatural positions. She couldn't stop thinking of how much it hurt.

She was going to be sore tomorrow.

Harper then had an idea. "You remember when we watched Naruto? They used their chakra to release energy. Think of your cursed technique that way!"

"Uh...okay!" Tilly said, finally climbing out of the dumpster. Suddenly, her eyes lit up with determination, and she began to focus on her cursed energy, like she was channeling her inner Naruto.

Harper could tell that Tilly was thinking hard about something. "Tilly! Focus your energy and release it!"

Tilly rubbed her face but felt her skin start to melt. What the hell, she thought.

"Harper, I'm melting!" she yelled.

"Its probably your cursed energy activating! Now use it!" Harper yelled back.

Tilly nodded, trying to find her courage. She ran up to the cursed spirit, yelling, and grabbing its leg. The cursed spirit squealed in pain and stopped its movements from swinging Harper around.

This gave Harper the chance to channel her own cursed technique. She put her hands out in front of her and a mighty gust of wind came out, blowing the cursed spirit away!

The cursed spirit tossed Harper into the air as she blew it away and she began to fall.
Time slowed down as she watched the ground getting closer and closer to her.
Just when she thought she was a goner, Choso caught her in the nick of time!
Out of breath, she looked up at Choso. "Nice catch," she said softly.

Choso smirked as he held Harper in his arms. "You should have been more careful," he said, his tone laced with concern. "If it weren't for me, you would be a goner by now," he added.

Harper couldn't help but feel grateful towards him. His strong grip made her feel safe and protected. It was as if nothing in the world could hurt her when she was in his arms.

Choso looked at Harper with a look of tenderness. In that moment, she felt incredibly drawn to him, like a moth to a flame. She couldn't help but close her eyes and imagine what it would be like if their bodies were pressed together...

No. Stop. Just friends.

"You can put me down now," Harper said to Choso. Choso gently put her down and Mahito ran up giggling.

"That was amazing, Tilly!" Mahito told her.

"No, Harper was amazing. All I did was melt like ice cream!" Tilly told him.

Harper came over and tightly embraced Tilly, saying "I knew you could do it. Well, we could do it." The pair embraced each other tightly, savoring their victory.
Geto then walked up, saying "Ah, it seems you two survived" in a condescending tone.