Salem is the first awake. His brother left on the bed to rest a little longer as he went to take a shower, change for school, then make breakfast for them for when they both woke up.
He mixed some pancake mix. The color is a light brown, slightly sugared dough.
It's in a tall glass measuring cup, he pours some on the pan to heat it up, then again and again. The glass is now only able to make one more. He then lets it cook for while, flips it. Waits again, then picks up the pancakes, a plate, takes off the pancakes and puts the pancakes and a plate.
The pancakes are an amazing brown color and the smell is amazing.
He stops and stares at the pancake as it cooks and his attention turns his problem at hand.
Salem: "How do we stop Hachishaku?"
Wonder: 'This is what you want to do? Right Salem…?'
Wonder's voice sounds very curious if Salem truly wants to go through with his decision.
Salem: "Yes. Please don't keep asking me questions like. The thing made me scared… Of course I'd want to try and protect my brother."
Wonder: 'What if it wants to protect your brother?'
Wonder tries to make Salem see reason.
Salem: "Why would something like that ever want to protect my brother? It made me feel fear. Anything like what you said should never want the other to scare that other person."
Wonder: 'And what if it's the only figment of safety your brother has, since the school as started?'
Salem looks away from the stone in frustration and he grunt. His eyes unknowingly goes red.
Salem: "What do I do then? What me to just aske her what she wants with my brother?"
Wonder: 'That's a step in a direction.'
Salem: "Yeah sure..."
He sighs, smoke comes out but he doesn't turn into The Burning Man, instead he just cools down and his eyes return to it's normal color.
He sniffs the air. It stinks, like something is on fire...
Salem: "The Pancake!"
Salem turned quickly and saw that the pancake was starting to get a black crust around the edges.
Salem grabs a spatula and tries to flip the last pancake, but it's to late.
It's BURNT, really burnt.
He just takes it off the pan and into the trash, then he grabs the metal handle for the pan. That should burn anyone that touches it, but to Salem it's pretty cool.
He puts it into the sink and blasts the water on it to cool it off.
Salem hears footsteps and turns to see his little brother standing at the icebox, and rubbing his eyes.
Mickey: "Why does it smell stinky in here?"
Salem grabs another plate for Mickey and grabs a pancake for him.
Salem: "I made breakfast. Mom, probably still at work. I'll walk you to school, because I think we are both to late to run after the bus."
Mickey stops rubbing his eye, smiles and get onto the table with his cool dinos, cars, and robots Pj's.
He smiles as if he forgot everything from last night, and Salem is happy that he's like that, so he doesn't wanna remind him.
Salem's just happy that he's happy.
Salem smiles and brings Mickey a plate of pre-sugared pancakes, the he opens the icebox, navigates the terrain of food, drinks and sauces to find syrup to give to his brother.
Mickey: "Can I pour it?"
He says as Salem comes over to him with a plate and syrup.
Salem: "You going to drench your pancakes in syrup?"
Mickey tilts his head in confusion.
Mickey: "What does "drench" mean?"
Salem forgot the vocabulary of a elementary schooler isn't the best.
Salem: "Okay... You going to drown your pancakes in syrup?"
Salem put down the plate and the syrup.
Mickey shakes his head violently.
Mickey: "Nope... I won't do that."
He gives Salem a smile that practically says... "I'm very much going to do exactly what you said not to do", but reluctantly Salem let's him.
He turns around to get spoons and forks for Mickey and his pancake.
Once he grabs it and turns it around, he surprised to see that he actually kept his promise.
Mickey didn't drench his pancakes in syrup and he was sitting there on the table swinging his feet on a chair that's high over the ground for him.
Salem: "Here's your fork and here's your spoon."
Mickey grabs both of them, still with a smile on his face and starts to dig in.
Salem grabs the plate with the other pancake, sits down, pours some syrup and begins to eat beside his brother.
They both eat in silence for a while as they both chew and bite the pancake, with sounds of swallowing breaking the quiet.
Mickey: "Salem... You will be nice to Hachi if we meet her again?"
Salem: "You have a nickname for her?"
Mickey: "Yeah, but she says not to call her by that when the class is together."
Mickey furrows his eyebrows and gives Salem a look.
Mickey: "Don't ignore my question. Will you be nice?"
Salem: "Okay. I'll try and be nice to her."
Mickey smiles and goes right back to finishing his food.
Mickey ends up finishing his food before his brother, jumps off the chair and walks with his dishes. Putting it into the sink and wash he hands.
Mickey wipes his hands on the side of his pants.
Mickey: "I'll go shower and get ready?"
Salem nods as he takes another bite and Mickey runs off to go shower.
The water begins to run and Salem ends up finishing his food after a good minute, he walks over to the sink, washes the dishes and cleans the counter around the sink of the splashed water up on it.
Salem hears the shower turn off and after a minute the bathroom door opens, then what Salem believes is Marissa's room door that opens then closes.
Salem goes past his mother's room, goes into his room, grabs his bag, then goes into the living room to sit on the couch and wait for his brother and they'll leave together.
Salem: "Would there be a way to possibly stop the her? Hachishaku I mean."
Wonder: 'I would be able to contact a Myth for help. Since I don't think you'll be able to stop her with your current power.'
Salem shakes his head.
Salem: "If I started to learn how to use your power how long would it take for me to use it well?"
Salem's mind jumps back to when he tried to make a ray of fire to burn Bean-Nighe, but it didn't work.
Wonder: 'If you were to actually try. You should be able to controll the flames with ease in... 2 months or so.'
Salem sighs.
Salem: "If something happens to my brother before those two months get pass?"
Wonder: 'You shouldn't think so negative Salem. Your brother will be fine.'
Salem: "How do I know th..?"
Mickey comes out wearing his school uniform, giving Salem a look like he's insane.
Mickey: "Who were you talking to?"
Salem just stands up and tries to make him seem insane as well.
Salem: "I wasn't talking to anyone…? Are you okay?"
Mickey: "Yes you were? I heard you say something like… "How do you know" and then you stopped when I came out here."
Salem shakes his head softly.
Salem: "No, I think I'd know if I said that."
Mickey looks around the room and there's no one.
Mickey: "I guess that could be true."
Mickey walks up to Salem with a bag that has different colors and things on it but Salem doesn't really know what they are. It just looks like an insane amount of small animals to him.
Salem: "You ready?"
Mickey nods with a smile.
Mickey: "Yeah let's go."
Salem and Mickey exit the house, locking the door behind them.
Salem puts the keys at the bottom of his bag.
They head out to the sidewalk, cars of many different varieties pass them as Salem holds Mickeys hand not wanting him to get took or to wander off.
Mickey walks just faster than Salem, but that's because Salem doesn't want Mickey out of his sight.
They continue walking for about thirty minutes.
Salem and Mickey eventually pass by Salem's school. Mickey looks at it, then he looks at Salem as they continue on with walking.
Mickey ignores it then they continue on going to the elementary school that Mickey goes to.
Salem and Mickey pass by many people as well, some even wearing Salem's school uniform.
Salem: "Is Hachi really the only friend you have?"
Salem looks down toward Mickey as he asked the question.
Mickey looked at Salem once then back to the sidewalk to not end up on the street.
Mickey: "Yeah and she was super nice when she saw me playing with the toys by myself at the school yard."
Mickey hops and skips as he seems to reminisce in what happened.
Salem takes into a slight jog to keep up.
Salem: "Oh… Okay. Nice to know you have friends."
Salem voice sounds sad, because Salem knows that there's something wrong with the tall girl, but he can't just place it on a "I don't like her" type thing, Mickey would hate that.
Mickey stops skipping as he walks again.
They end up at the outer gates of the school. Salem with Mickey pass them both as cars slowly flow in to drop their kids.
Salem walks Mickey up to the front entrance and Mickey goes inside.
Salem feels it again, the sense of dread from before, but it feels like it's been dialed down. So that he doesn't faint from pure terror.
Salem sees Hachishaku get out of a car nearing the front of the gate.
Wonder: 'Now's the best time to ask her what she is? And what's her deal with your brother.'
Wonder gives a good reason and Salem begins into a walk.
He gets closer.
Wonder: 'Will you be okay to do this Salem?'
Salem: "I have no other choice."
Salem gets close to her and his heart skips beats so much he'd die if he wasn't be pushed alive by Wonder.
Salem: "Ha… Hachishaku..?"
The tall girl looks down on Salem as she smile. Her teeth looking sharp and horrifying to him, but somehow not to anyone else.
Salem: "What… What are you?"
Hachishaku: "What do you mean?"
Salem: "You're not human I mean. I can feel it off of you. And what do you have to do with.. With my brother?"
It took a deep breath and his heart jumping out to finish that end of the sentence.
Hachishaku: "I knew there was something weird about you…"
Her teeth smile even more.
Hachishaku: "You tried to immediately grab your brother away from me…"
She start breathing heavily.
Hachishaku: "You didn't want me around and you were cautious of me. What are you?"
Salem feels like he's shrinking under he watchful eyes.
Hachishaku: "How good would it be to eat you…?"
Salem: 'EAT?!'
Salem stays stunned as he watches Hachishaku walk past him.
Hachishaku: "Don't worry. I'll eat your brother before I eat you."
She walks past him completely and makes her way over to the front entrance of the school.
Salem stays stunned as he looks in the direction she was once in and then looks back to see that he's been standing there for a good minute and she's already went into the school.
Salem: "Wonder is there anyone you can…?"
Wonder doesn't make him finish.
Wonder: 'I already have someone…'