DΛЯK DΣᄂIGΉƬƧ

Leech

The rain poured down in sheets outside, the sound of it hitting the roof creating a constant rhythm that filled the quiet space of Eustass's small room. He sat cross-legged on the floor, glancing over at the bonsai tree on his cluttered shelf, his mind wandering. The steady downpour outside had lulled him into a trance, thoughts swirling lazily like the clouds overhead.

A sudden bang echoed through the hallway, followed by quick, excited footsteps. The door to his room slid open, and Josei burst in, soaked from head to toe, her pigtails dripping water onto the floor. Her face was a mixture of excitement and anxiety, and despite her drenched appearance, she looked more alive than ever.

Eustass blinked, jolted from his thoughts. "Josei? What the hell—why are you soaked?" He raised an eyebrow, noticing the nervous energy radiating off her.

Josei didn't answer right away, her hands fumbling with her jacket. "You won't believe what I found!" she exclaimed, her voice carrying a slight tremor. She opened her jacket, revealing something wriggling against her hand—a Darkwalker. It was small, leech-like, its dark, slimy body latched onto her skin, sucking greedily.

Eustass's eyes widened in alarm, immediately noticing the blood trickling from the bite marks on her hand. "Josei, are you crazy? Why is that thing attached to you?!" He moved toward her, panic creeping into his voice.

"I'm fine! It's not that big a deal," Josei said, her voice shaking just a little as she cringed at the sight of her own blood. "I, uh, managed to trap it by making it run into a truck. Then I... well, I pounced on it with my jacket. Figured it'd be good practice for you. It's small enough for you to handle, right?"

Eustass looked from her bleeding hand to the wriggling Darkwalker, his stomach twisting with concern. "I don't know... this seems risky, even for you. What if it gets loose?"

Josei grinned, ignoring his worry. "Nah, I got it under control. Besides, you need the practice, right? You're turning 17 soon, you can't just keep fighting caterpillars forever." She flung the leech-like creature onto the floor, stepping back as it writhed and snapped its jaw-like appendages at them.

Eustass's heart raced as he stared down at the Darkwalker. It was grotesque, its slimy black body slithering toward him with alarming speed. He gulped, but nodded. "Alright... fine. Let's do this."

At first, the Darkwalker darted around the room faster than Eustass could react. He fumbled over himself, tripping and slipping in his attempts to keep up, each failed move making him feel more and more ridiculous. Josei stifled a laugh as she watched him stumble about.

"You're getting outsped by a leech! Come on, Eustass!" she teased, though there was no malice in her voice, just the usual encouragement hidden behind her sarcasm.

"Shut up," he muttered, quickly getting to his feet after another failed swipe. The creature lunged again, this time striking him in the side. Pain blossomed in his ribs as he stumbled back, but he was more focused on the fact that the black fog—the mysterious energy that had protected him during his last fight—didn't appear this time.

"What the—? Why isn't it protecting me like before?" Eustass muttered to himself, wincing as the leech took another swipe at him.

Josei's brow furrowed in confusion. "The foggy stuff? You're right... it should've come out by now."

Pushing the confusion aside, Eustass gritted his teeth and focused, summoning his Kokoro. As the Darkwalker lunged again, he waited until the last possible moment, gathering all his energy into his fist. At the final second, he punched forward, his hand glowing with the shimmering white energy. The impact was immediate, the Kokoro surging through the Darkwalker and making it pop like a balloon, splattering the floor with black sludge.

Eustass stood there, panting slightly, staring down at the remains. His ribs ached where the creature had struck him, and the absence of the black fog still nagged at him.

"What was that about?" he muttered. "When it hit me, nothing came out to protect me like before."

Josei shrugged, clearly puzzled as well. "Maybe the black portal has some sort of condition to activate? Who knows. You might just need to figure it out through trial and error."

Eustass sighed, sitting down heavily on the floor, still feeling the lingering ache in his side. "Great. More mysteries."

Josei wiped some of the blood off her hand and tossed him a towel to clean up. "Well, you won this round at least."

"Barely."

She smiled, walking over to the porch that led out to the garden. The rain was still pouring down, creating ripples in the small pond outside. She looked back at him, her excitement from earlier calming into a more thoughtful expression. "Wanna watch the storm with me?"

Eustass hesitated, but then nodded, following her to the porch. They sat down together, side by side, both of them getting slightly spattered with raindrops as they watched the downpour. The garden was peaceful, the air fresh despite the relentless rain.

Eustass leaned back, watching the droplets cascade from the leaves, enjoying the rare quiet moment. His mind drifted back to the fight, trying to puzzle out the condition for the black portal's activation. He couldn't shake the feeling that something about it was linked to more than just instinct. Maybe there was something deeper he wasn't grasping yet.

But for now, he let those thoughts fade, focusing on the rain and the company beside him. Despite everything, this moment—this quiet peace—was something he didn't want to lose.