HOTD: A New Dawn

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Saya noticed the way Tysone looked all around, as if he had just woken up from a coma and realized how different the world had become. "What's wrong?"

Tysone glanced at her. "What do you mean?"

She rolled her eyes. "I know this is your first time in Japan, but you have this stupid look of disbelief on your face. What, did the American think we didn't have high rise buildings and fancy billboards?" She chuckled. 

He was silent for a moment—a moment too long. Saya was about to speak up when he replied. His eyes swiveled from one pedestrian to another. A man on the phone, looking distressed. A beautiful couple with interlocked hands. A mother with her child. 

"Have you ever stopped to think about how every person you walk by has a complex life of their own? A story to tell. People that mean the world to them, problems they couldn't solve? Places and goals they wish to visit, dreams and aspirations they couldn't accomplish?" His expression was pulled into a tight frown. "Is it normal to think we're the protagonists of the story, or does someone out there write down ours as mere, nameless characters, and think we don't exist for someone greater, but ourselves?"

Saya stared.

He chuckled. "Ah, sorry, I'm probably not making sense to you. Maybe I'm just homesick, that's all."

Saya paused midstep, a cute fang peeking through her lips. She crossed her arms over her chest with a thoughtful expression, puckering her lips. Then, with a self-confident smirk that drew her eye to her tiny fangs, she said; "Well, regardless. That doesn't mean I don't exist. So what if my life has been written and planned out by some higher, unseen entity? I'm the protagonist of my world; that's what matters, isn't it? Just because you're not the center of the universe, doesn't mean you're not part of it, or that you can't do great things on your own." She shrugged. "We all leave our marks in our passing, in one form or another. Besides, who's to say I don't affect lives that don't intersect with mine as well?"

She received no immediate response from the large foreigner, which led her to believe he found her statement of mind inspiring or something. Saya was going to bask in that flustered, ego-boosting look of admiration, however, his damn large hand found a perch on her tiny head. 

He ruffled her hair, making her squawk in indignation. "Well, you certainly affected mine when you careened into me earlier."

She wrestled out of his hand, glaring at him. "I didn't careen into you. You were merely attracted by my higher intelligence and blocked my way with your brutish, American manners."

"Being a petulant brat doesn't constitute higher intelligence, but you do have a venomous tongue on you... oh, did I just sass a literal fourteen-year old now? What will the Lord have in store for me?" Tysone shook his head, unable to contain his smile. It didn't reach his eyes.

...

Unexpectedly, Tysone ended up spending almost the rest of the day with Saya. The young girl walked around him in circles as they strolled about town.

"Here's Fujimi Academy High school. One of the top institutions in Japan." Saya began, gesturing with her hands, pacing about, walking so fast that Tysone struggled to keep up. Still, he had to stop for a moment as he beheld the famous gates of the school—famous because that's where all that fuckery would go down.

A zombie would slam repeatedly into the gate, before a teacher approached to violently disarm the situation, only to have his neck bitten off. Tysone felt the memories kickstart with more clarity, though it was quite odd to see a real life representation of a place that he had only seen in the anime.

The structure was impressive, though the stone gray made it look more like a prison. 

Malik would claim that there was no difference between a school and a prison, since both consisted of imprisonment, and peer bullying by shitty teachers or adults. He would often question, with that joking glint in his eye, why did they even bother investing in an education system when people graduate with their minds further decayed than when they enrolled.

That said, Fujimi Academy was not a bad place in all actuality... considering that zombie outbreak and all... Tysone sighed. That was still two years in the future. Saya was here, and he doubted that an event would occur anytime soon.

"Hm? What do you think, impressive, right, right?" Saya said with pride, huffing with her nose in the air while Tysone zoned back in.

"So this is the place that our resident genius' unarguably intellect will, one day, illuminate?"

"Ha, right~?" Saya smirked, seemingly unaware of his mocking. Then again, he spoke in a tone devoid of condescension, and just simple humoring. "How old are you anyway, you don't look that old."

Saya crossed her arms behind her back, a questioning orange gaze latching on him.

"What kind of question is that?" Tysone tapped her forehead, which made her brow scrunch up. "I'm at the peak of my youth, something you're still quite a few years away from achieving... unless you want to age ten years all of a sudden, only to realize that being an adult means having full access to the world with no parental restriction. Enjoy being tiny while you can."

Saya gaped incredulously, scowling while massaging at her tiny forehead. "I'm not tiny, I'm merely under-developed and short! That's no reason for you to suddenly jab at my forehead like that either!"

Tysone hummed, ignoring her. "Do you think we can get a tour? I'd like to see what fabled institution will indoctrinate my foolish brother's mind, and mold his already bad habits..." He couldn't help the smile.

"That depends." Saya suddenly tilted her chin up proudly, putting her hands on her hips as if to pose before him like she just posed for a magazine cover or something. "If it was just you, they'd probably not let you in for how unkempt you look." She grinned smugly.

"Oh, look at you body shaming me." He snorted.

"What's body shaming?" Saya looked confused.

Tysone shook his head. "Nothing, just ignore it. So?"

Saya was grinning, snickering underneath her hands again as she relished having the upper hand.

"Well, if it's me accompanying you, there won't be any issue." Saya winked a pretty orange eye at him before strutting to the gate. It didn't take long before a janitor walked out to inquire about whatever business they might have, before realizing Saya's identity and welcoming them in.

Tysone and Saya walked side by side as the janitor rambled on and on about the prestige of the school and its accomplishments, to which Tysone could do nothing but tune out or pretend that he was interested. Even Saya looked bored out of her mind. The janitor's monotone didn't exactly help either.

They walked through the winding corridors, up and down stairs that in two years will see friends betraying each other to a horde of zombies. Or the rooftop, where Takashi would cement his role as the protagonist. They even dropped by the campus's dojo, where Saeko Busujima, still a first year, practiced kendo. 

Tysone stared in slight surprise as Saeko's sword hacked through the air fluidly. Her purple hair fluttered behind her like a blanket, droplets of sweat flying all around in a cinematic way. She was elegant and beautiful. 'And deadly.' He knew what that girl was capable of with a blade in her hands. 

Even though she was two years younger than canon, she was likely miles ahead of Tysone in terms of skill. 'It doesn't matter. I'll learn as much as I can with what time I have left.'

The janitor also stared before he averted his attention.

Tysone turned around, ready to leave. However, for a brief moment, it seemed as if fate aligned their eyes to meet. It was a quick glimpse—it didn't mean anything, yet, unbeknownst to them, both of them were left with a deep impression of each other. 

"..."

Leaving the dojo behind, Tysone had a thoughtful frown on his face. Meanwhile, the janitor began monologuing again. It was all static noise to his ears, though. 

Saya glanced curiously up at Tysone when they left. "Did you spot your type of woman?" She inquired, discreetly. The janitor was still talking enthusiastically. 

Tysone smiled slightly. "She's got the looks that could kill, but with a blade, she doesn't have to."

"You country bumpkin." Saya wrinkled her tiny nose. "Don't you know that the pen is mightier than the sword?" 

"Can you write faster than she can cut your head off?" What use would a pen be when mindless zombies clawed at your door. "Though, in terms of appeal for a potential partner, I guess both can be charming… one has wit as sharp as a blade, the other has an actual fucking blade." 

"I guess you're not displeased with the school, after all." Saya laughed loudly before a pretty, dainty hand covered her fang-toothed snicker. She cupped a hand around her mouth and whispered. "So? Convinced?" 

Oh, yes. He was convinced. Everything was so damn identical to what he had seen in the animation. He turned towards Saya. His bright teeth peeked through his wide smile. "It's perfect."

They walked through several classrooms. The janitor looked their way excitedly and hurried on with pride to introduce another notable room. Inside, a man with a loud, charismatic voice was lecturing the class, who listened on with rapt attention. 

Of course, it was not as if Tysone could understand what was being said, but the man's slimy appearance and pinstriped suit evoked bad memories of a certain character in the anime. Koichi Shido. 

Shido had a cheerful smile on his face as yapped on and on to a class of attentive listeners. He even pushed his black-framed glasses up, catching a stray glint of sunlight exactly like in the anime. It was so ridiculous that Tysone couldn't help but chuckle.

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And, naturally, fate intervened one more time that day.

Because that slimy fucker's eyes found Tysone, and an expression of utter disgust flitted across his face.