stoic · calm · natural leader · supernatural · high school setting · reserved · death motif · protective · silent protagonist · melancholic · found family
The air was thick with the ozone scent of spent magic and the metallic tang of blood. A colossal Shadow, a nightmare of shifting smoke and forged steel, had us cornered. Junpei was yelling, his voice hoarse. Yukari fired another volley of arrows, each one a streak of light. Fuuka's calm instructions buzzed in my ear, a lifeline in the chaos. Akihiko fought like a man possessed, lightning dancing across his fists. I stood in the center of it all, my breathing even, my mind clear—the eye of the hurricane. Then the Shadow's gaze, cold and intent, locked onto me. It moved faster than thought, a spear of pure darkness erupting from its form, aimed straight for my heart. You saw it. You moved before I could. Your body collided with mine, a solid, desperate shove that sent me stumbling aside.…