The early morning halls were empty, except for the sound of Joine's footsteps no voices, no laughter just an empty void of silence.
It was always like this. Arriving before anyone else, leaving after everyone was gone. He sighed stuffing his hands into his pockets.
"Another morning, another day of nothing"
But one day when Joine was in class, all of a sudden everyone disappears in front his eyes, puff without a trace, thinking he was hallucinating and then he heard a noise.
A loud footstep pounded against the cold floor, slow and menacing, Joine was stuck in place turned frozen as a stone, and a chill ran down his spine as fear tightened around his chest. The air was thick, suffocating. He struggled to breathe and to even move properly, but he forced himself to hold on.
"What's going on?" Joine whispered, his voice barely hearable,
"What should I do" Joine panicked and then he heard something in his classroom by the teacher desk, so he went to check it out trembling in fear. He took a peek under the desk and then BAM!!!...
"Ow! Something hit me" after he settle down, he saw a cute fox appeared before him.
The fox glanced at him and smiled "Hello there human I'm the great Fu Ju fox, now bow before me!"
Joine blinked, "Who now?"
The fox narrowed his eyes. "I said— "
Joine cut him off, waving his hand "yeah, yeah, you can tell me later. As you can see, we're in a pickle"
The fox tilted his head "what's a pickle?"
Joine sighed. "Never mind"
The air suddenly grew heavier. Ominous present comes closer, sending shivers down their spines.
Joine whisper "do you feel a present in the hallway"
"Yea I do, for a human it's weird"
"What's weird?"
"I mean the thing you're feeling is dark magic, and it's surprising you can feel any magic at all"
Joine shocked "Hehe I don't get it either"
The fox was interested in this human
"Let me run some test on you"
Joine yelled "NO TIME ITS ALMOST HERE!!"
The fox groaned, and then summoned a small, enchanted sword. "Fine here use this"
Joine stared at it. "I don't know how to fight much less use a sword"
He hesitates for a moment and grips his head, "is this real? Or am I dreaming?"
The fox suddenly bit his arm.
Joine yelled "OW!! What the hell was that for?!"
The fox smirked "see? You're not dreaming,"
Joine rubbed his arm. "Wait did you read my mind?"
"Something like that, but that's not really important right now but I can tell you this is real, so get yourself together"
Joine smiled, took a deep breath, nodded and picked up the sword and got up off the floor.
He went toward the door and looks outside and saw an armored knight wielding a rusty halberd in the hallway blocking the stair.
Joine tensed. "Hey, you might wanna see this"
The fox peeked out. "Oh, my is that an armored knight, I heard of it but never seen one"
Joine sighed. "Great so we're both clueless"
"Not fully clueless," the fox corrected. "That sword is embedded with my magic. You can use it to defeat that knight"
Joine's eye twitched. "You want me to fight that thing!!"
"You'll be fine! Just remember try not to get hit"
Joine groaned, "Easy said than done!!"
Joine took a step in the hall, the knight took a step forward, and Joine had to act now. He took a deep breath and charged at the knight, and the knight reacted instantly, swinging its weapon and WHAM! Joine was flung back, crashing into the wall.
The fox gasped. "Joine are you okay?!"
Joine slowly got up, "Y-Yeah... DO I LOOK OK!!"
"Yea your fine"
The fox awkwardly scratched his ear. "O-oh, yeah... I forgot to mention... The knight doesn't have eyes. So, they detect movement"
Joine grabbed lumi by the fur and shook him up and down.
"WHAT? You could have told me that sooner!!"
"Give me a break I simply forgot but now you know, sooo no need to worry"
The knight took another step forward. The fox had to think fast and one flick of his finger he cast a barrier magic to keep the knight back for a moment
The fox sighed. "Alright plan B, let's try forming a contract"
Joine hesitated "A-A contract, I don't know about this"
"No time, forming a contract to be one with each other nothing else"
Joine clenched his fists.
The fox took his hand "I've decided to trust you completely. You just have to trust me too."
"Trust huh well ok I'll trust you for now"
The fox yelled loudly "before we started, I would like to say my name is lumi, don't forget that"
Joine smiled "that's a very nice name and yea I won't forget it"
Lumi blush "o-ok Joine! Repeat after me!"
""By morning's glow and dawning light,
Our fates are bound this very night wait, I mean morning!"
Joine paused. "You messed up your own spell?"
Lumi coughed. "Ahem, give me a break this is the first time actually doing a real contract with a human or anyone at all"
After lumi repeat the spell to form the contract, a magic circle glowing pure light surrounded them.
Joine looks at the magic circle "this is new"
Lumi smiled "yes its working lets continue"
"Through trials fierce and battles tight, our souls ignite with magic bright!"
Joine hesitated. "Do we have to ignite? Can't we just lightly warm up?"
"SAY IT!" Lumi snapped.
"Alright, through trials fierce and battles tight, our souls ignite with magic bright!"
The floating symbols from the magic circle flared like sunbursts, encircling them in golden rings.
"By floof and fluff, by tail so grand,
A warrior's strength lies in our hand!"
Joine blinked. "Did you just rhyme 'grand' with 'hand'?"
"DO NOT QUESTION THE CONTRACT!" Lumi yelled, his ears flattening.
Joine groaned. "Fine By floof and fluff, by tail so grand, a warrior's strength lies in our hand!"
BOOM! A sudden explosion of golden light and sparkles sent Joine flying backward, his butt skidding across the dusty floor.
"OW."
Lumi floated over him, gasping. "Whoa! That was way more dramatic than I expected."
Joine sat up, rubbing his head. "Did it work?"
Lumi gasped, pointing at Joine's right hand. "OH! You got a magic crest! It looks super cool!
The contract was completed and both of them become one, and the magic crest took the shape of the sun.
Joine froze. "Wait. Is it permanent?!"
Lumi coughed. "Uh Maybe"
Joine grabbed him by the neck. "What Do You Mean Maybe?!"
Before Lumi could answer, the armored knight let out a metallic roar, breaking the barrier, stomping toward them.
Lumi grinned. "Well! No time to worry about that, NOW GO USE YOUR NEW MAGIC POWERS, PARTNER!"
As the knight charged forward, his armor gleaming under the dim light, Joine's heart pounded like a war drum. He had no time to think—only to act. With a sharp breath, he thrust out his hand, desperation fueling his voice as he called upon the light.
"Come forth and destroy my enemies, Celestial Judgement"
Lumi shocked "wow that's pretty powerful and a badass name"
A beam of light energy blast out and destroying the knight and haft the school
"Oh shit, lumi what now!"
"Uh I don't know"
Before Joine could said anything he fainted and felt on the floor, as his eyes close, he smiled
"Well, I sure did a good job"
"JOINE"!!
1 hour later
Joine wakes up in his class like nothing happened
"What happened, a dream"
He rubbed his eye and saw the magic crest and screamed
"AH!!"
The entire class looks at, him he froze in shame
"Why did I scream like that"
And the bell ring, everyone just thought he was crazy and some just thought he had a bad dream. And they left. He was still frozen
"I'm going inane".
He took a deep breath, and went outside the class and saw the wall was fixed and he scratch his head,
"Lumi must have fixed the wall, I don't know how but that's good, thought I was dead meat"
It was home time everyone went home but Joine was in the school gym working out and rethinking what happen and where lumi could be, Joine sad expression
"Will I ever see him again, is he gone forever, uh my head hurts"
20 minutes later
He packs up and was about to leave the school and a heavy rain started to fall
"Oh, shit I didn't bring my umbrella, dam it, what's my luck"
Joine clutched his bag over his head, sprinting through the icy rain. The rain hammered against his skin, soaking through his uniform, each drop colder than the last. His shoes sloshing with every step as he rushed through wet and dark streets.
By the time he reached home, his fingers were numb, his body shivering uncontrollably. He fumbled with the keys, his hands trembling from the cold. The moment the door swung open, he rushes straight inside, dripping water all over the floor. Without a second thought, he ripe off his soaked clothes, each piece clinging stubbornly to his skin.
Stepping into the shower, the first blast of hot water stung like needles against his frozen body, but soon, Steam curled around him, drowning the world in a fog of silence.
After drying himself off and throwing on fresh clothes, he collapsed onto his bed, muscles aching, and eyelids heavy. The soft mattress felt like heaven. He barely had time to pull the blanket over himself before his body gave in.
Sleep swallowed him whole.
When he finally woke up, the sky outside had shifted from deep night to pale afternoon. He blinked at the ceiling, his mind sluggish.
"I slept that long...?"
A Background short bonus
A Few Years Ago...
Joine tightened his grip on the tiny bundle in his arms his newborn sister, Mina. She was barely a few hours old, yet their parents were already gone, leaving nothing behind. He didn't know why. He didn't know if they would ever come back. But deep down, something told him they wouldn't.
With no money, no food, and nowhere to go, Joine did what he could to survive. He wandered from place to place, knocking on doors, hoping for a kind soul to take them in. Each rejection stung, but he couldn't afford to break. Mina needed him.
Days turned to weeks. Hunger gnawed at his stomach, exhaustion dulled his senses, and hope faded with every closed door. He was ready to give up until he saw an old woman collapse in the street.
Without thinking, he rushed to her side, lifting her frail body and carrying her back to her home. She was unconscious but breathing. Joine waited anxiously by her side, ready to leave if she woke up and screamed at him like everyone else had. Instead, when her eyes fluttered open, she smiled.
"You saved me, didn't you?" she said, her voice gentle.
Joine hesitated but nodded.
That day changed everything.
The woman, known to the neighborhood as Grandma Elya, took them in. She gave Joine work, shelter, and a reason to keep moving forward. For the first time, he felt like he could breathe.
Present Day...
Years had passed, and now, Joine and Mina now in their own apartment, lived a somewhat normal life going to school, dealing with everyday struggles. Mina, cheerful and full of energy, didn't remember the hardships they faced, and Joine preferred to keep it that way.
But fate wasn't done testing him yet.
Because every day is a new day and new adventures a wait, he hasn't realized yet, but everything is about to change now.