Hazel swam around in the darkness that followed for a few seconds, before giving up and staying still to save her energy instead. She could still hear faint commotion around her, but she could not figure out why she was practically blind now.
"If you're wondering why you can't see anything, don't worry. You're not blind! You've just been blindfolded for my next game!" Tomoko's voice echoed from... somewhere. "Second game, Fukuwarai! Your friend's facial features have been rearranged, so your job is to arrange them back correctly. The one who does it best gets to move on to the next round!"
Something sticky materialised in Hazel's hands, although she could not see what it was. She groped around in the dark as she slowly realised what she was touching.
"That's his nose!" Tomoko's excited voice yelled in her ear. "Go on, put it up there!"
Hazel squinted. She could barely see an outline of a human face before, which was where she assumed the 'nose' in her hand was supposed to go. The girl focused on her senses, ignoring the Kitsune's goading.
Like hell that's his nose.
She began plucking the objects in her hand onto the three-dimensional face, trusting entirely in her precognition. No way in hell she was listening to Tomoko's misleading directions.
From what she knew about Japanese culture, Fukuwarai was a New Year's game for children. Blindfolded, they were supposed to put facial features onto a drawing of a face while their friends attempted to misdirect them. And instead of a real person, they were given a simple two-dimensional cutout to play with. Tomoko must have altered the game just as she did with the previous one.
The darkness vanished as Hazel put the last feature onto the face.
In front of her stood a perfectly arranged replica of Liam's head. She exhaled in relief, silently thanking the Heavens for such a convenient gift. Liam, on the other hand, did not do so well.
Hazel groaned as she looked to the side. The replica of her own head had all its features in the completely wrong places. Her eyes were where her ears should have been. Her nose was on top of her head. Her mouth was upside down, and way too low on the chin.
Tomoko roared with laughter at Liam's poor attempt.
"The winner is clear! Hazel moves onto the final round!" she proclaimed. "I'll be sure to play with you lots, Liam."
Hazel watched helplessly as the girl transformed Liam into a doll as well. No matter the outcome, Tomoko had something to win. This whole game was rigged from the start.
"Final game. Just you and me, Hazel."
Tomoko's feet touched the ground as her clothes transformed into Starlight High's school uniform. Blocks of pillars rose from the ground, turning the whole area into a huge maze.
"Keidoro. Or in your land's language, Cops and Robbers." A mischievous smile crept along Tomoko's face. "Just like when we were hiding in the library, remember? You're the cop, and I'm the robber. Catch me if you can."
Tomoko vanished to the side in a flash.
Hazel reacted as fast as she could, chasing after her fleeing shadow. But Tomoko had long disappeared from view. She traced her fingers along the pillars absentmindedly, trying to figure out where that girl could've gone to no avail. Everything around her looked pretty much identical.
Dammit, she was already lost in this maze.
Sucking in a deep breath, Hazel focused every mote of concentration on her power. Once again, the sheer strength of the magic within her threatened to overwhelm her. But she couldn't afford to hold anything back now. Not when so many people were counting on her to beat this game.
So she let go of all inhibitions.
The world closed in around her, imploding and sucking her outward at the same time. She saw everything, then she saw nothing. And as the growing magic devoured her mind, her consciousness emerged anew, guided by pure instinct yet remaining entirely in control.
No longer were there mere pillars in her path. They were only paths, and she could see which ones led to victory.
Hazel kept her eyes closed, using her ability to direct her instead. A strange sense of awareness pricked at the back of her mind, almost as if she had temporarily gained omniscience. Tomoko was hiding, not running.
And that made everything a lot easier.
"Uwaah! How did you find me?" The Kitsune let out a startled yelp as Hazel popped up from nowhere. "No! No, you won't catch me!"
The fox spirit backed away at supernatural speed, before literally walking through another wall.
Hazel paused as the 'awareness' prodded her gently, almost like a motherly guide. The whole place had just started wriggling like a wobbly castle as rubble flew around chaotically. To make things more difficult, Tomoko had even put up illusions of herself all around the maze as a distraction.
It was all a pointless gesture.
Hazel sauntered towards the real Tomoko, only stopping occasionally to avoid the flying debris. She approached the girl from behind, who was still busy casting her illusion magic.
Hazel tapped her shoulder. "I win."
"What? No!" Tomoko squealed in shock and disbelief. "How are you doing this? No... No! You... You must be cheating!"
She tore herself from Hazel's grasp, backing away slowly as frustration danced in her eyes. "No, you must be my doll too! Let me play with you forever! I can't... I won't accept this!"
Dark red magic swelled in Tomoko's hands. Hazel opened her eyes in shock as her gift left her consciousness abruptly. Tomoko snarled, thrusting her hand at Hazel—
"Ain't that a bit stubborn, even for you?"
The magic dispersed before she could throw it out. Tomoko looked around in surprise, before her eyes squinted in irritation at the muscular figure standing inconspicuously in a corner.
"You!" She jabbed at the man who had materialised in what was supposed to be her private domain. "How did you find this place?!"
Komyo stepped into the light calmly as Hazel's jaw dropped even further in confusion. What on earth was going on?
"Like it or not, our friend here beat your games," he said. "Going back on your word just means you're a spoilsport, Tomoko."
The man snapped his fingers, and the dolls beside Tomoko regained their regular human appearance. She made a half-hearted attempt to lunge for the fleeing Magus, but only ended up letting her hands fall limply to her sides.
"Christ, that was terrifying," Liam mumbled, rubbing his arms tenderly. "I never felt so helpless and vulnerable before."
Luca stepped towards the Japanese man. "Are you Komyo? Are you a Kitsune too?"
"Indeed, I go by 'Komyo' in human tongue." Komyo shifted his green eyes to Luca momentarily, before looking at Tomoko again. "But I am not exactly a Kitsune. I am what most people call a 'Hoshi No Tama'— A ball of concentrated Kitsune essence. To be more precise, Tomoko's magical essence."
Tomoko pursed her lips rebelliously and looked away.
"That is the only reason why she could not see your magical gift, Hazel Adams. Without me by her side, her powers have been drastically reduced," Komyo continued. "In a bid to go against her celestial duties, she cut off the tail where most of her powers were vested. I am that tail. Ever since I have been separated, I kept my distance, waiting for another hundred years to be up so I can merge back with her body."
"Then why are you here? Why won't you leave me alone?" the girl cried. "I'm... I'm not done playing. I still haven't made a friend..."
"I'm your friend, Tomoko!" Hazel stepped forward. "And I..."
Her voice dropped.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for spoiling all your fun. It's just..." She bowed her head. "It's just that you reminded me of myself in middle school. I never learnt to socialise properly, and playing tricks on other people was the only way I knew how. I'm sorry for pushing you away when it was really myself I couldn't face."
Tears welled up in Tomoko's eyes as well. Hazel moved closer and held Tomoko's hands close to her chest.
"Search my heart if you need to. You know I am telling the truth," Hazel whispered. "Tomoko, I'm glad I met you. If you want someone to play with, I'll be your playmate."
"Really?" Tomoko's eyes quivered as she looked at Hazel.
Hazel nodded, feeling the first tear roll down her face. "You won't be alone anymore."
Tomoko hugged her tightly, her body trembling with every sob.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJSiKo97ns
