"This place is big..."

Harry looked down at the girl gripping his shirt tail as he led her through the corridor of the Academy. The left side was lined with room after room, while the right was filled with archways holding up the roof and open to the outside yard of fresh green grass and ancient oak trees.

"You've already seen this part right? With Lady Katayama?"

Looking outside at some students walking back to their dorms, located at the end of the corridor, she nodded. "I saw... Um... An 'office'. And uh... A 'hospital'?"

"Mm-hm." Harry nodded. After waking up in her room, tears falling down her face, she'd been taken straight to the hospital ward for examination. That's where they learned of her cruel predicament.

After making sure she could at least walk, Lady Katayama took her across the corridor to her office on the opposite end to explain what would be happening in the following week.

Now there wasn't much else to show her here, beside the dining hall, which would be open in a couple of hours, and the bedrooms.

"Alright then, time to take you to the town."

"T-Town?"

"It's a place where we take care of people that can't take care of themselves. Or can't afford a better life. There's a big gap between the classes in our country, so there's too many impoverished people to count. Thankfully we can help a handful, and teach them to help others the same way."

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"... O-Oh..."

Harry mentally slapped himself. What was he trying to explain here? Of course she wouldn't understand stand any of this.

"Don't worry you'll get it eventually." He patted her brittle hair, but a surge of electricity went through him and his hand flew back.

He staggered back, gasping for any kind of air. It felt like his insides were scooped out of him. Even his heartbeat was no more.

The more he gasped for air the more it didn't come, and the more he felt like he was shriveling into nothing.

It was like he was suddenly a shell of himself. An empty shell forced to move because his brain working on overdrive was telling him too.

"... H-Hey!"

Two small hands wrapped around Harry's arm. The feeling lurched out of him, throwing him forward. His insides came back as quickly as they left. His chest felt like it'd spew open from being overfilled.

But his heartbeat calmed down, and his lungs slowed. He was able to open his eyes again, finding himself on his knees.

The girl was gripping onto his arm for dear life. He locked eyes with her for a second, about to say he was alright, when that feeling started coming back.

He winced, looking away as he grabbed his head. So that's what it feels like...

I know what 'nothing' actually is now...

As he waited for the pain in his temples to slip away, Harry tried to understand what happened.

That'd been the first time he'd felt someone's emotions just by touching them. Looking into her eyes just then caused him to feel it too, but that was normal. But he didn't know the first was even possible.

"Are you okay?"

The girl reached towards him again.

I can't feel that again!

It felt like Harry was torn in two. Like he'd never be real again. He couldn't feel like that. Not again.

He jumped up, stepping back from her. Avoiding direct eye contact, which was easy since no one could tell where his eyes ended and his pupils began, he waved a hand at her.

"I-I'm fine! Thank you. Er...come on, let's go on now."

Now two steps ahead, Harry went on ahead. He took one glance back to make sure she was still following before walking on.