Walking downstairs, Lumi followed behind her—a bit nervous—despite being invisible and all.
In the kitchen, sitting at the dinner table was her Mom and Dad, waiting for her with breakfast. Steam rose from a plate of eggs and rice as the smell was enough to make Emi's stomach rumble.
"Morning, sleepyhead!" Her dad said, glancing up from his coffee. "Thought you were gonna sprint down the stairs again."
"Good morning, Emi." Her mom added with a smile. "Sit down before it gets cold."
"Morning!" Emi chirped like a baby bird, sitting in her chair.
Lumi hovered just above the doorway, peeking around like a ghost afraid of being scolded.
He relaxed a little when no one reacted to him, considering there were no sudden looks, or pauses.
Just a normal breakfast with a normal family.
("Okay... okay. They really can't see me! This is so nerve-racking!") He thought to himself.
Emi clasped her hands together out of habit.
"Thanks for the food!"
Her dad raised an eyebrow after sipping on his coffee.
"You've been extra polite lately."
"Is that a bad thing?" She asked innocently.
He chuckled.
"Guess not."
As Emi picked up her chopsticks, she felt it again.
Something was off—but she didn't quite know what it was.
Her mom was pouring herself some tea, humming a soft tune, but for just a moment, her shadow atop the table didn't match her movement.
It stretched out too long—as it hesitated before catching up.
Emi's grip tightened around her chopsticks as Lumi noticed it immediately.
He drifted closer, lowering his voice so only she could hear.
"...Did you see that?"
Emi stiffened up as she straightened out her back at his voice.
She didn't answer right away.
"Emi?" Her mom asked, widening her eyes in concern. "Is something wrong?"
"N-No!" Emi blurted out, forcing a smile. "Just... really hungry!"
Her dad laughed.
"Nothing new there."
"Hey!" She shouted with a pouty face.
And so, Emi lowered her head and started eating, feeling her heart beat a little too fast.
Lumi's playful energy was gone now. He hovered near the ceiling as his eyes were fixed on the floor, and the table, where the Mother's shadows were.
"...That's not normal." He muttered under his breath, skeptical about the whole thing.
Emi swallowed a mouthful of rice, forcing herself to chew it slowly.
Her mom set her teacup down with a soft clink, glancing at the youth.
"Make sure to eat enough, you've got school and a big test today."
School. A word that grounded her to normal life, pulling her back into routine.
Bus, backpack, bell, math, social studies, and art. Everything she'd done a hundred times before yesterday existed, but she had completely forgotten about it after last night.
She needed to constantly remind herself that she was living two lives.
Emi nodded quickly.
"Okay!"
She shoveled down the rest of her breakfast, nearly choking when Lumi moved closer again.
"...We'll talk later." He whispered quietly, but with a reassuring voice. "Just don't panic."
She gave the tiniest nod to the side, just enough for her parents not to notice.
Her dad stood up, grabbing his mug.
"Alright, clocks ticking, Emi."
"I know!" She hopped out of her chair, holding onto the straps of her backpack. "Bus waits for no one!"
Her mom smiled at her enthusiasm.
"Did you pack everything?"
Emi froze for half a second before taking off her backpack and checking inside.
There lay the Silver Key.
"Yep!" She said, almost too fast.
Her mom stepped closer, fixing Emi's collar like she always did. As she leaned in, Emi felt it again; that strange delay. The shadow at her mother's feet moved out of sync, but it wasn't enough for an adult to notice.
However, for a Magical Girl, they could see through all illusions and deception.
"Have a good day," Her mom said, patting her head.
"You too!" Emi replied, then paused. "...Don't work too hard, Mommy!"
Her mom laughed.
"I'll try not to."
Emi turned and bolted for the door before she could overthink too much.
Outside, the morning air felt lovely as the sky was a clear blue.
Everything looked normal like always.
A nearby neighbor waved while watering their plants as Lumi floated beside her as she ran down the driveway.
"...Emi!" He said, raising his voice, "That thing back there, it was a—"
"No need to say it." She replied, worried in her expression. "We can talk about it after school."
"But Emi, that's a—"
"Don't tell me please!" She said, stopping him mid-sentence. "I don't wanna be worried and cry so much at school. My Mom will be okay!"
Lumi widened his eyes before nodding, unusually serious.
"If... you say so."
At the end of the street, the yellow bus was already there, doors open with its usual hiss.
"Oh no. I'm gonna miss it!" Emi shouted, sprinting faster.
She waved her arms wildly.
"Wait! Wait!"
The bus driver sighed but kept the door open just long enough for Emi to scramble aboard, nearly tripping up the steps.
"Cutting it close again." The driver muttered.
"Sorry!" Emi said, catching her breath.
She hurried down the aisle and slid into an empty seat by the window, lowering her head into a sigh before the bus started pulling away.
Lumi was floating right next to her, observing the inside of the bus for anything suspicious.
"Hey, Emi!" Sitting in front of her, and leaning over the backseat, was a young girl with blonde hair and green eyes. She was dressed in a sailor uniform.
"Oh, hi Yumi!" Emi waved at her with a smile.
Yumi grinned and rested her chin on her crossed arms over the seat.
"You looked like you were about to die running for the bus just now. Again!"
"I was this close." Emi said, pinching her fingers together. "If I missed it, Dad would've given me another lecture."
"Oof. Tragic." Yumi nodded solemnly, then brightened up with a smile. "But hey! You made it. That's what matters."
The bus continued forward as Yumi tilted her head, squinting at Emi who was tense in her muscles.
"You okay? You look kinda... tense."
"Huh?" Emi blinked multiple times. "I do?"
"Yeah. Usually you're more 'good morning world!'" Yumi waved her arms dramatically.
But today you're more like... 'good morning existential dread.'"
Emi giggled despite everything that's been going on.
"That's not even a thing with me! There is never any dread in my heart."
"Well, that's what it looks like."
Lumi hovered a little closer to Emi's shoulder, careful not to move too far into Yumi's space.
"...She's perceptive." He muttered under his breath.
"But seriously, are you okay?" Yumi asked.
Emi shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
"I'm fine. Just... didn't sleep much."
"Studying?" Yumi asked, tilting her head to the side.
"...Something like that."
Yumi accepted the answer, nodding her head.
"By the way! Did you hear? We've got a math quiz today."
Emi froze in place, widening her eyes.
"...We do?"
Yumi laughed.
"Kidding! Wow, your face! Pfft."
"Yumi!" Emi whined, clutching her chest. "You scared me!"
"Hehehe, sorry, sorry." Yumi giggled. "But we do have art today. That's basically the same thing as a blessing."
"Oh! Really?" Emi perked up. "What are we drawing?"
"Dunno. Probably animals. Or trees." She shrugged. "As long as it's not math, I'm happy." She said, turning back around in her seat.
Emi relaxed a little bit as the knot in her chest went away.
The bus hit a small bump, jolting everyone up in their seats as Emi instinctively tightened her grip on her backpack straps.
"...You okay?" Lumi asked.
Emi nodded, turning her eyes to the window.
"Yeah." She whispered.
Yumi suddenly leaned over again.
"Oh! Almost forgot, are you walking home with me today?"
Emi hesitated, staring at her friend.
Her dad's words echoed in her head, telling her that he doesn't want her walking home alone anymore.
"...I think my dad's picking me up." She said, disappointedly.
Yumi blinked.
"Oh. Everything okay?"
"Yeah!" Emi said quickly. "He's just being... extra dad-ish I guess l!"
Yumi made a face.
"Parents, am I right?"
"Totally." Emi agreed.
The bus slowed to a stop, pulling up in front of the school gates with a loud hiss.
"Well..." Yumi said, hopping up from her seat, "See you in class!"
"Yeah!" Emi stood as well. "See you!"
As they got off the bus, Lumi moved closer to her with a low, unexpected voice.
"...Wow, this school is freaking huge!"
Emi looked up at him with a gentle smile.
"It's Hoshikawa School! It's for elementary and middle schoolers."
Emi adjusted the straps of her backpack as students poured past them in every direction.
"It only feels huge." Emi said, walking toward the gate. "Once you're inside, it's just... pretty normal."
Lumi floated upside-down beside her head, peering at everything with wide eyes.
"Normal is doing a lot of heavy lifting here." He muttered. "There are at least five hundred kids, and I can already feel weird stuff crawling around."
Emi winced at his words.
"Please don't say it like that."
They walked inside with the rest of the crowd.
The school building was tall and white with big words, "Hoshikawa School" engraved at the front entrance.
Everything looked exactly as it always had with posters taped to walls, potted plants by the entrance, and a pair of teachers talking near the doors.
"Emi!"
She turned to see Yumi jogging over, waving with both arms like she might take off.
"I forgot to ask! You're in my class today, right?" Yumi asked, grinning.
"Yeah." Emi replied, smiling back. "Mrs. Tanaka's class."
"The best class ever!" Yumi said confidently. "She only gives homework when the universe is mad at us."
They stepped foot inside the school and walked together down the hallway.
Emi's footsteps slowed—watching the Shadows stretch along the floor beneath the lights. Shadows were everywhere on the walls, and even on the lockers. Her eyes looked down without even meaning to. For half a second, one of the shadows didn't match its owner, causing Emi to stumble forward.
"Whoa!" Yumi reached out and grabbed her sleeve. "Careful! Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah!" Emi said quickly, straightening up her posture. "I just... tripped."
Lumi had gone very still.
"...Emi." He muttered under his breath. "You saw that too, didn't you?"
She didn't answer. She couldn't. Instead, she forced her feet to move again.
Yumi studied her face with obvious concern.
"You're really sure you're okay?"
Emi nodded multiple times.
"I promise."
Yumi didn't look fully convinced, but she smiled anyway.
"Alright. But if you pass out or something, I'm telling the nurse."
"That's fair." Emi said, managing a small laugh.
They reached their classroom as desks were arranged in neat rows with students taking their seats.
Emi slid into her usual spot near the window. Yumi plopped down in front of her, spinning around in her chair like she always did.
Lumi moved up toward the ceiling, scanning every corner.
"...There's something here." He murmured to her. "It's not like last night. This is a different entity altogether."
Emi kept her eyes on her desk, curling her fingers around the edge.
Soon, Mrs. Tanaka entered the classroom a moment later, clapping her hands once.
"Alright everyone, good morning! Those who are standing, please take your seats."
"Good morning!" The class responded, following her orders.
As Emi said her greeting, she glanced toward the window, pretending to look outside.
"Today we'll start with announcements, then move on to art later this morning."
A wave of relief passed through the class as Emi tried not to worry so much about the feeling settling in her chest.
She had butterflies in her stomach, and too many thoughts circling in her head all at once.
Lumi could tell she was a bit panicky, so he lowered himself next to her shoulder, keeping his voice quiet.
"Calm yourself, Emi. Whatever is out there doesn't know you're a Magical Girl! It won't hurt you." He nodded to reassure her. "You have what it takes to beat this. Just keep a cool mind."