5 - A New Day

After the incident that had taken place, the students of Toudou academy went on with their day, appearing as if the events that happened prior weren't that big of an issue, and this greatly made Mary worried as she walked to school with her friend Yuno.

Arriving at the school, she noticed Zukafu ahead of them and was about to approach him, but then suddenly, from out of nowhere, Charao appeared and ran to Zukafu with a cheerful expression.

Mary asked Yuno "Since when did the group clown become friends with someone like him?"

Yuno answered, "They've been friends ever since that car incident."

Mary paused, puzzled by Yuno's words. She asked, "What car incident?"

Yuno answered, "You know, the incident that occurred four days ago..."

Mary was left baffled as she remembered that four days prior, Zukafu had been in the hospital after the Enigma incident and this left her wondering what was going on.

The students around Mary and Yuno turned around and made a path as they saw Naoya and Luna, who had just arrived to the school.

Yuno moaned in disgust and said "Man its always the same with the Kami kids!" She sighed, then continued "Yeah, they protect us from the Enigma's and etcetera, but it really annoys me in how much I have to see crap like this everyday, what do you think Mary?" She turned to Mary, who had vanished out of nowhere.

"Mary?" Said Yuno as she tried to look for Yuno.

Mary had run after Zukafu and upon seeing him depart from Charao, she approached him but was shocked to what she was seeing in front of her as she saw Zukafu's big and empty, compared to his eyes looking the norm. And his expression felt like it was deprived of everything.

"Zukafu, what happened to you?" Said Mary worried.

Zukafu responded with his tone sounding monotone or expressionless, "What do you mean? I've always looked like this."

"No you haven't!" Shouted Mary, realising that the students were now looking in their direction. She slowly began hearing whispers, which she speculated were about his relationship with Zukafu.

Mary then grabbed Zukafu and said, "Follow me!" To which Zukafu obliged. The two dashed up the stairs, passing student after student until they reached the rooftop.

Zukafu asked, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Mary, running out of breath, took some time to catch her breath. She then asked, "I want to know what the hell is going on?!"

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, Zukafu said, "So I'm not the only one that noticed this?" He then asked, "What do you remember from the previous lockdown?"

Mary was left baffled by what she was hearing from Zukafu, but she answered "I-I remember you and I were in the bunker while there was an Enigma attack but then out of nowhere, this student jams a-"

Zukafu then speaks, finishing her sentence, "-The lightning gem into me, furthermore restoring my connection to the lightning element. Is that not what happened?"

"Wait, but then-" said Mary as she remembered the events as Zukafu described it. "But then, what the hell is going on?"

Zukafu answered "It seems everyone has amnesia as I had talked with Charao who told me about the car incident despite it being a few weeks ago."

"A few weeks ago!?" Mary said, shocked by this.

"And most importantly, Charao spoke to me about the incident as if we became friends after that." Said Zukafu, with what he said further making everything that was happening more complicated to explain.

Mary then asked, "But then, how come you're like this?" Which she was referring to Zukafu's cold looking expression.

Zukafu answered, "I've always looked this, ever since I was eight." He then began remembering a more graphic memory with the woman that he had seen during the stabbing back at the bunker.

Zukafu snapped out of the daydream and turned around, taking off his uniform and showing a mark that was somewhere at the top of his spine which had wholes in it, leaving Mary surprised.

She then asked, "What is that?"

Zukafu answered, "It WAS a place where the Emotion Exhibitor formerly was."

"The what?" Mary asked.

Zukafu explained the function of the Emotion Exhibitor, saying "A device that, when installed into my spine, sent particles that allowed me to experience feelings, but I never bothered using them."

Mary was left speechless by this revelation. She asked "So then... The person that I had spent less than a week with was..."

"Hiding who he truly was." Said Zukafu finishing her sentence.

Mary began seeing both Zukafu to when he first met him to the Zukafu that she was seeing now and barely saw a difference.

"How did-How did this happen?" Asked Mary.

Zukafu stayed silent, and had his head down as if he was hiding something deeper and that it was related to his current state. He then exhaled and answered bluntly "I gave up my human side for something important..."

"What was that?" Asked Mary.

Zukafu lifted his head and answered cryptically "... The last piece of her..." The school bell went off. Zukafu said "I'll see you after school Mary." And having said that, Zukafu left the rooftop, leaving Mary alone.

Mary was flabbergasted and frustrated with everything that she had just learned now and all she could do was stare at the sky.

Mary arrived to her class, surprising some of her students as she tended to skip most of them, especially since she was able to achieve high marks without even attending the classes.

She sat down on her desk, ignoring the fact that there had been crude words that appeared to have been carved or painted weeks or months ago.

One of the students named Ema approached her with a gift and handed it to Mary which was for Tatsuya. She then asked "Please tell him that I want him to get well soon." With a very timid voice before dashing back to her desk.

Mary looked at the desk and remembered how many girls were always around Tatsuya when they were younger.

Mary then lightly pressed on the gift, her eyes filled with annoyance but then calmed down for some reason. She then stood up and walked to Ema and handed back the gift to her, saying "My brother would appreciate it if you do it yourself."

Ema took back the gift and Mary walked back to her seat. The students whisper to each other about Mary's change in behaviour.

Despite the good grades, social and sustainable life, Mary felt misery in her heart as she felt life lacked meaning or excitement and chose to distant herself from others with a selective few ables to befriend her, with the prominent and only person being Yuno. And even now, being the lover of the Storm Warrior, her only reason that she could think of doing it was that she wanted to do something where she didn't live her life in a mundane manner.

The day went by quick and hours later, it was time to go home. Mary waited outside for Zukafu whom she found her walking alongside Ema and this made Mary feel jealous.