Inhale!
Barry took a deep breath, feeling instantly refreshed, and ditched the little rat he'd been toying with.
No time to waste on small fries like that—he had to follow his gut.
His feet moved on their own, trailing two women up ahead.
No doubt about it, one of them was radiating the kind of emotion ghosts like Barry craved.
It was pure, pent-up negativity, like top-shelf whiskey.
Under the dim yellow streetlights, Barry's figure flickered, barely touching the ground as he followed close behind.
Both women were brimming with life, full of youthful energy. They were young—probably still in school.
Their outfits screamed trendy teen vibes, and their conversation bounced between schoolwork, crushes, celebrities, and makeup.
Man, kids these days—they're really young when they're young.
Barry, a soul straight out of hell, felt a warm nostalgia listening to them, like his own youth was creeping back.
After tailing them for a bit, Barry zeroed in on his target.
Both were American high schoolers, seniors gearing up for college next year.
One was a blonde with curly hair, tied back in a neat ponytail, radiating bubbly, outgoing energy.
Barry could feel waves of positivity coming off her.
The other, with light brown hair, gave off a faint, gloomy vibe. Compared to her friend, she seemed like a wallflower, blending into the background.
And she was the one Barry was after.
From their chatter, the brown-haired girl, always in the sidekick role, mostly just nodded along to her friend.
Watching her from behind, Barry got a weird feeling—this girl was a total downer.
Like the kind of person who'd cry for hours over a single punch.
"Bye, see you tomorrow, Maria!"
"See ya, Lily."
The two parted ways, heading home.
It's you. Don't run.
Barry made up his mind. Tonight, he was getting answers.
With a big leap, he launched himself, landing lightly on Maria's backpack, hitching a ride.
Maria didn't notice a thing.
After saying goodbye to her friend, she started walking home.
After a bumpy journey, Barry arrived with Maria at her place—a massive, sprawling mansion.
Once inside, Maria didn't bother talking to her parents.
She climbed a white spiral staircase to the second floor and slipped into her room.
Tossing her backpack into a corner, she flopped onto her bed, sprawling out.
Who knows what she was thinking—maybe she was just zoning out.
The weekend was over, and tomorrow was back to school.
Ugh, I don't wanna go. School sucks.
Maria Brennan preferred staying holed up at home, terrified of talking to people. Her only friend was Lily, a childhood buddy.
Her social circle was tiny, and her sensitive nature didn't help. She wanted to change but lacked the confidence to take the first step.
A domineering dad, a depressed mom, and her own sense of being a failure—that was her family.
Her mom's advice? Maria thought it was all dumb, useless ideas.
Her dad, a plastic surgeon, was convinced she didn't care about her health or looks. In short, he thought she was kinda plain and wasn't doing anything to fix it.
Worst of all, the fact that she was his daughter? That was an embarrassment to him.
"Fuck! You're all jerks! Do you even get how much this hurts?!"
Maria muttered under her breath, a cloud of dark energy rolling off her.
The misery of school, her parents' lack of understanding, her deep insecurities—all of it fueled her pain.
Even Barry, who'd snuck into her backpack and unzipped it, could feel her anguish.
And that bottled-up resentment? It was intense.
Through the backpack, Barry started soaking up the fresh waves of negative emotion.
This girl—I knew I had the right one!
Barry patted himself on the back for his sharp instincts. Maria was a walking bad-luck magnet.
But there was one thing he couldn't quite figure out: the deep, bone-chilling gloom clinging to her.
No worries, though. He'd dig into that later, in the dead of night.
The clock ticked on.
Three in the morning.
Everyone was fast asleep, lost in sweet dreams or nightmares.
In the corner of Maria's bedroom, her backpack's zipper slowly opened, and Barry crept out.
With a soft leap, he landed on her bed, staring straight at the sleeping Maria.
At that moment, his senses picked up the dark aura around her, stronger than it had been during the day.
It was like some parasite was slowly draining her life force, but so gradually it wasn't harming her body.
In simple terms, it was siphoning her energy slower than she could replenish it.
American evil spirits know sustainable harvesting now?
Time to see what you really are.
Nobody messes with Barry's turf, even if it's just a temporary haunt.
With a sense of territorial pride, Barry shuffled his short legs and stepped right up to Maria.
"Let's pull back the curtain, you little gutter rat."
The chibi scarecrow raised an eyebrow, reaching out, his hand inches from touching Maria.
Like a summer camp soldier king possessed her, Maria's eyes snapped open, icy cold and glaring at Barry.
It was a warning: Back off, or you'll regret it.
"Whoa! Nice stare. Not what I expected—you're not as pathetic as you seem."
Barry's tiny, detailed eyes locked onto hers, fearless.
His palm sprouted sharp straw tendrils, glinting like needles as they inched toward her eyes.
When the straw was just 0.1 centimeters from her pupils, the spirit hiding inside Maria couldn't hold back anymore.
A pale, translucent hand shot out, ghostly and bloodless.
It grabbed the scarecrow's descending arm, saving Maria from being blinded.
Half of the spirit's form emerged from Maria's body, and its face was almost identical to hers.
Barry's eyes lit up. Oh, twins! That explains it.
Classic horror movie twist.
Barry knew the drill.
The spirit, Ellen, gripped tightly, trying to crush Barry's body.
Breaking into someone's house at night? That wasn't just burglary—in America, that'd get you blasted with a machine gun.
For Maria's safety, Ellen gave it everything.
"Ah!" A sudden cry of pain.
A flash of searing flame erupted, burning hot for an instant.
The scorching pain in her hand forced Ellen to let go and recoil.
"Goodnight, Makabaka."
Barry used the flames to break free, then lunged forward, smacking Ellen square in the forehead, knocking her out cold.
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