"So what do we do now.." piped up Kojo.

"Well.. I don't know what you're going to do, but I for one want to give this a go. I mean, what do I have to lose? I go home to an empty house, my parents are dead, it's an opportunity to start fresh" said Hiro in a refined tone, clearly he had been thinking about this throughout the afternoon.

Kojo himself knew he wanted to give it a shot, The Hipo Campus, an opportunity to finally become normal, to reign in his constant fear of everything. He laughed to himself, this was the first unknown he wasn't actively scared of, if anything, he felt a weird sense of excitement and nervousness, one that wasn't debilitating, but encouraging.

"Then let's do it, together" declared Kojo.

Before they could part ways, footsteps could be heard behind them, ones with intention to approach them both. Still wary from the earlier encounter with Asa they both quickly turned around to see a sweaty Keno.

"So.. are we- I mean, are you going to this campus tomorrow?" muttered Keno, clearly feeling embarrassed by just asking the question. He seemed to pose the question towards Hiro, clearly ignoring Kojos existence.

"We think so.. well, we have to find the campus first" voiced Hiro. Even though he shared this bizarre experience with Keno he wasn't keen on the idea of warming up to him. 

"A-are you going?" chirped Kojo, even after witnessing Kenos pale complexion after using his fear emblem earlier in the day, he had returned to his normal level of awkwardness and fear when encountering Keno.

"HA! What a stupid question, ofcourse I'm going. If this means getting stronger and surpassing Hiro then yes, I'm gonna be there" smirked Keno, clearly the encounter with Asa hadn't humbled him at all or so it seemed.

"Fine. See you tomorrow then. 9am, Kyoto Station" announced Hiro.

The three eventually parted ways, heading towards their respective homes. Today would be their last day as Kyoto Imperial students, for tomorrow was the beginning of their journey at the Hipo Campus. 

___________________________________

"exam today?" murmered Kojo's father, engulfed in todays newspaper odds for the local horse races.

"No. Just up a bit earlier today" replied Kojo. Lying to his father was instinctive, he'd never care enough to question his answer. True to his character, his father responded with a subtle grunt.

Just before opening the front door to head, Kojo noticed his reflection in the mirror of the front hallway. "The purple triskele.. it's bigger" he thought. The triskele, now quite obvious on his neck, extended from his adams apple around his neck with one of the curved lines extending down the middle of his throat. With that, he wrapped a scarf around his throat, opened the door, and made his way towards Shibuya.

Kojo liked the bullet train. Sat in a carriage, covered in silence amidst others who didn't want to be bothered. It suited him, it suited them. This was a social norm he had excelled at. But today however, today felt different. Today felt intense. He could sense pockets of.. emotion around him. Head against the window, he glanced across the carriage, pockets of varying purple clouds emerged from each bystander, different in density, shade of purple and shape. Even the old lady next sat to him wore a fiery bright purple spark coming from her chest, small, yet prominent. It was like he could feel her fear, her rage, her wrath. It was overwhelming, almost.. empowering. 

"HEY". A loud jeer snapped Kojo back to life. Hiro towered above him, standing on his tippy toes as if to seem taller than the rest of the people in the carriage. 

"So are you ready to go to.... the Hipo Campus" teetered Hiro, as if he wanted people to hear him whisper.

Kojo simply raised his index finger over his mouth, inviting Hiro to partake in the communal silence. Hiro begrudgingly stayed quiet. 

*The next station is Shibuya, please exit on the left side of the carriage, mind the step between the train and the platform. 

As Kojo & Hiro we're shuffled off the carriage, they both felt uneasy, uncomfortable, like a weight was in the air. After mindlessly climbing the stairs to exit the platform they found a wild Keno, leaning against a barrier in the train station, smoking indoors to passerby's disgust.

"Fuck man, I didn't even drink last night" whined Keno.

"You feel it too" stated Kojo, it was obvious something was up. Visually, the three guys looked heavy, weighted, as if carrying a load too much for each of them to handle. 

"Say guys, is it just me or is everyone hear lit up like a Christmas tree, all im seeing are spots of yellow attached to everyone" yawned Hiro, trying to remain composed but failing terribly as he stretched his arms upwards.

"Nah, I see them too, cept mine are green" admitted Keno. 

"Well we're not gonna find the college just standing here, let's walk around" suggested Kojo, worried that if he didn't continue walking now he wouldn't move at all.

The three guys began mindlessly walking around the station, spotting different intensities of purple, yellow and green dots before them, immersed in an ocean of people. Like a selective Christmas tree with particular lights. Once, the guys began walking, they noticed certain paths created harsher and heavier feelings within themselves. Other paths, lifted the weight. After a short period of time, they started to follow a route that gradually reduced the weight. Until their slow walk, turned into a brisk strut, almost seeking this weightless feeling. After what felt like a lifetime, they found themselves at the end of a barren platform, alone. 

"I feel, lighter, like there's barely any weight down here" exclaimed Keno

"Yeah. Me too" Kojo & Hiro replied, pulling a small smile as they answered at the same time. With that, the distant shriek of a train began to approach. But it was soft, like the noise carried little to no weight. Suddenly, a single cart trotted out from the dark tunnel, blue in colour it was the only carriage of the train, conveniently stopping in front of them. The carriage had 16 windows. 8 either side, it was half blue, half white and it looked like it had been refurbished. Not a single spec of dirt could be seen on the outside, which was weird seeing as the underground wasn't known for it's cleanliness. The train puffed to a halt and the carriage doors slid open, revealing an empty carriage with evergreen leather seats aligned in the centre of the carriage. 

Timid, the boys crept into the carriage and took their seats. The carriage had no handles, no advertising, even the signature underground smell was replaced with a fresh, botanical scent of lavender and parsley. The doors automatically closed and the carriage took off, going faster, and faster until the windows showed a constant line of light from the tunnels bulbs. For the first time in the last few weeks, Kojo didn't feel scared. He didn't feel anxious. He felt excited, his legs tapped with excitement, his eyes followed the windows beams of lights. Even Hiro noticed his excitement and threw him a face of concern, almost disturbed by his acceptance of the weird scenario. He could sense that this was going to be the beginning of something special.