October 18, 1999 – Outskirts of Eva – Zone 47
The gentle, continuous humid breeze swaying the treetops carries with it dark clouds, signaling that today the sun will not take its stage. Sarah is leaving home wearing a gray sweater over her uniform. As she descends to the basement, she hears her mother calling out to her.
"Hey! Aren't you going to take an umbrella? And why don't you let me or your dad drive you?"
"No! Let him sleep. He stayed up late last night celebrating the game, and he has work today—you know how Mondays are for him."
"Hmm… Just thinking about what that man bet on last night…" After a brief sigh, Leila continues, "Don't worry about it—I'll take you!"
"Aren't you traveling? I don't want to delay you! Just grab the umbrella for me; I'll walk." Sarah finishes her sentence while gazing at the cloudy sky.
Leila looks at Sarah with admiration. "Just wait a moment!" She dashes back inside.
While her mother fetches the umbrella, Sarah sits on the doorstep of her house and closes her eyes to shut out all visual stimuli. She notices that the wind surrounding the area has picked up slightly since she first felt it when opening the balcony door earlier.
Something lightly taps her head, interrupting her moment. She tilts her head back and sees her mother with a goofy smile, holding a family-sized umbrella in her hand.
"The biggest one? Seriously?" Sarah playfully grumbles, takes the umbrella, and gives her mother a kiss on the cheek. At that moment, Leila leans her forehead against Sarah's and closes her eyes.
"Daughter, never forget! It doesn't matter who you are…"
"…but rather who you want to be!" Sarah completes the phrase. "I won't forget." A subtle closed-mouth smile naturally spreads across her face. "Have a safe trip, Mom!"
"Take care at school, okay?"
"You can count on it." Sarah is already on the sidewalk walking away. She turns around briefly, sticks out her tongue in a teasing face, then spins back and continues on her way. Leila is caught off guard and momentarily speechless but soon smiles and heads back inside.
On the way to school, the wind intensifies. Above, the clouds grow darker, casting a shadow over the sky. Everything seems on the verge of collapse. Sarah quickens her pace as she prepares to cross a street without stopping.
As she steps onto the asphalt, a black butterfly with glowing red spots nearly collides with her face. In a reflexive movement, she dodges to the side in a sway reminiscent of a fighter's evasive maneuver.
After this moment, Sarah stops and watches the butterfly continue its journey, carried more by the wind than flying freely.
From Sarah's perspective, the butterfly appears to move in slow motion until it disappears behind a gray wall. It wasn't that the butterfly wasn't flying quickly—especially given the wind—but in that brief bubble of time Sarah entered, the butterfly seemed to beat its wings as if captured in slow-motion footage. Once it vanishes behind the wall, everything returns to normal, and the first drops of rain plummet from the sky, crashing forcefully against the ground.
The school gate is just one block away. Sarah notices Marcela has just arrived and is getting out of her father's car. Speeding up her steps, Sarah manages to approach the car window before it drives off. With two quick knocks on the glass, she gets noticed.
"Hi, Sarah, how are you?" he says as he finishes lowering the window.
"I'm good. Did my mom call you?"
"She did. If it rains too much, I'll give you a ride home. Don't worry."
"Thanks, see you later!"
She picks up her pace again, noticing more and more raindrops falling. When she reaches Marcela, who has just arrived in the courtyard, Sarah playfully pokes her side with the umbrella. Marcela jumps to the side, placing her hand where she was hit. Looking startled, she relaxes after a moment and lets out a sigh.
"It had to be you. I don't even know why I still get startled, ugh." She suddenly makes a pained expression.
"Oh, come on! It didn't even hurt!" Sarah downplays Marcela's reaction.
"Did it not? Come here!" Marcela takes off chasing Sarah, who runs toward the cafeteria.
"Ahh, protect me! She wants to hit me!" Sarah hides behind Bernardo, who is sitting on a bench eating a piece of bread and drinking powdered chocolate milk.
"…" Bernardo looks at Marcela, then at Sarah. "You're the last person who needs protection!" He tries to suppress a laugh.
Sarah pushes the back of his head and sits next to him on the bench.
"No fun," she mutters under her breath.
Marcela sits on a bench facing Bernardo, catching her breath.
"Let me tell you something… If it's raining when class ends, your dad will give me a ride home, and I'll ask him if you can stay over. My dad will be working, and my mom is leaving at noon. You know, so I won't be alone." Sarah begins explaining her elaborate plan to Marcela while Bernardo listens quietly.
"But you're always alone. I don't think he'll agree." Marcela expresses doubt about the plan.
"Wait, I'm not done yet… Then, in the afternoon, around two o'clock, Bernardo will come over." Sarah furrows her brow, pouting slightly, alternating glances between Bernardo and Marcela, all in silence.
"Interesting, I like it… What time does your dad usually come back?" Bernardo asks Sarah.
"He only comes back at night, but her dad usually picks her up in the afternoon, I think." Sarah responds, turning her gaze back to Marcela.
"But I can ask him to let me sleep over at your place. What do you think?"
"Perfect! Then you can try sneaking out at night, you know." Sarah teases Bernardo, giving him a light poke in the stomach with her finger, causing him to squirm sideways in a futile attempt to dodge.
"OW! Wait! I need to check with my mom. I'll already be out all afternoon. If she doesn't mind—and by the way, what time does your dad usually go to bed?"
"He usually gets home tired around nine, takes a shower, eats dinner, and goes to bed around ten."
"Look, my mom wakes up early to clean the streets, so she sleeps really early. By that time, she's probably snoring. I think I can sneak out of the house."
"Deal! Now let's go to class because we have the Hunter's Guild exam, and I haven't studied at all." Sarah's face clearly shows a hint of concern about what lies ahead.
"Yeah, right! You never study and always do well on exams." Marcela accuses Sarah.
"As a future Dark Hunter, this test will be a piece of cake!" Bernardo boasts confidently.
"I've told you guys before—the secret is to focus during class. Teachers rarely test content from homework assignments. I'm always saying that." Sarah is already standing up, pulling the other two toward the classroom.
The teacher arrives, flaunting her black cloak, and administers the exam. Sarah is the first to finish. Another teacher comes in, then another, and just like that, the morning slips away. Meanwhile, the rain persists outside, pouring down as if the world were coming to an end.