The argument echoed through the main bedroom of the Johnson household.
Jonathan stood near the foot of the bed, fists clenched, jaw tight.
"Mia," he said, voice strained, "you're saying all of this just because you don't like the kid. That's not a fair judgment."
Mia Johnson stood opposite him, arms folded tightly across her chest, eyes cold.
"Then what is fair?" she snapped. "I'm telling you, Jonathan. That child is a bad omen. An evil entity of some sort."
Jonathan stiffened.
"He's the one who killed that child," Mia continued.
She didn't hesitate.
She didn't soften her words.
Because it was true.
The bully who had attacked Oden, Tyrone was dead.
After the snake bit into him, Tyrone had been rushed to emergency care. He had been poisoned by the snake but no one knew that. No matter what the doctors tried, they couldn't save him.
The reason was painfully simple.
No one knew what had happened to him.
Tyrone claimed he had been bitten, but by what, no one could say. The doctors assumed it was something extremely small, perhaps microscopic. They ran test after test.
Nothing came up. Poisen didn't show up in his body at all. They couldn't save him because they didn't know what do.
And so, eventually, Tyrone passed away.
What none of them knew was the truth.
The poison that killed Tyrone was made of cursed energy. And since cursed techniques could only be seen by people who can control cursed energy, no one saw the venom corrroding on Tyrone.
It wasn't especially potent. Anyone knowledgeable in cursed energy, anyone capable of manipulating it could have drained it out easily.
That is, assuming it was only one bite.
Multiple bites were another matter entirely.
But the doctors didn't know about cursed energy.
And neither did Oden.
Oden only knew one thing:
He was the only person who could see the snakes that came from his shadow.
No one else saw them.
So he knew.
My snakes bit him.
And that knowledge weighed heavily on him.
---
Earlier That Day — Two Days After the Incident
Mia and Jonathan sat stiffly inside the school meeting room.
Across from them sat Tyrone's parents.
Present as well were Oden, Olivia, Mell, and Mell's brother Kell, the children who had all been present during the incident.
Standing near the wall was the town's commanding police officer.
Officer Jeremy.
The principal, Mrs. Rose, cleared her throat and spoke first.
"Mr. and Mrs. Smith," she said gently, "we sincerely apologize for calling you in during such a difficult time. We only wanted to try and make sense of the situation. Everyone is confused, and we hoped to understand what happened here and now."
Mr. Smith nodded slowly.
"It's no problem, Principal Rose," he said. "As a family, we also want answers. We want to know exactly what transpired."
Officer Jeremy stepped forward slightly, his tone soft as he addressed the children.
"Kids, we're going to ask you a few questions," he said calmly. "Just answer honestly. You don't need to be afraid, okay?"
The children nodded.
Officer Jeremy glanced at his notes, then looked up.
"Alright. Who can tell me exactly what happened here two days ago?"
Olivia raised her hand.
"Yes," Officer Jeremy said. "What's your name, little girl?"
"My name is Olivia Johnson," she replied.
Officer Jeremy wrote something down.
Oliver Johnson.
He glanced back up, smiled warmly, and said, "What a cute name for a cute girl."
Olivia smiled back.
"Alright then, Olivia," Officer Jeremy said. "Please tell me what happened."
Olivia swallowed, then spoke softly.
"Well, Officer… Tyrone was bullying Oden. And when he was about to punch him, he suddenly started convulsing and collapsed. He was crying about being bitten by something."
The room went silent.
Then—
"DON'T YOU DARE LIE ABOUT MY TYRONE!"
Mrs. Smith slammed her hands on the table as she stood up, eyes red with grief.
"My Tyrone was no bully!"
Olivia flinched, shock written across her face. Fear crept into her eyes.
Mia stood up instantly.
She pointed straight at Mrs. Smith.
"Listen, ma'am," Mia said sharply. "I truly feel for you. Losing a child must be unbearable. But don't think for a second that I'll sit quietly while you speak to my daughter like that."
Mrs. Smith snapped back, standing fully now.
"Well your daughter is a liar! How else am I supposed to speak to a liar?!"
Officer Jeremy stepped forward quickly.
"Please," he said calmly, "everyone, let's calm down."
The two husbands intervened, pulling their wives back and guiding them into their seats.
Officer Jeremy exhaled slowly.
"I hear you, Olivia," he said gently. Then he looked around the room. "Is what Olivia said true?"
Mell and Kell exchanged uneasy looks.
Mell swallowed.
"…It's true," he said with a bitter expression. "We were in on it too."
Mrs. Smith slammed her hand against the table again, tears spilling freely now.
"Lies!" she cried. "You're lying about my Tyrone now that he's not here to defend himself!"
Mr. Smith stood and gently pulled her back down.
"Lisa, calm down," he said.
She turned on him immediately.
"What? Do you believe them too?"
"No," Mr. Smith replied. "But Lisa… we weren't with Tyrone twenty-four seven. Let's just listen to what else they have to say, okay?"
Principal Rose sighed quietly.
"Bullying…" she muttered.
Her eyes flicked toward Jonathan Johnson, who looked visibly furious.
"Olivia," Jonathan said, voice tight, "how long has Oden been getting bullied?"
Olivia answered without hesitation.
"Ever since he started school."
Jonathan turned sharply toward the principal.
"Principal Rose," he said coldly, "can you explain to me how my son has been getting bullied under your supervision? We pay massive school fees and my son is still being bullied. I hope you have a good explanation for this."
Mrs. Rose stiffened.
"Mr. Johnson," she said carefully, "this behavior was never brought to my attention. We have proper channels to report bullying, and no complaint was ever filed."
"That's not an excuse," Jonathan shot back. "The fact is, my son was being bullied in your school."
Mrs. Rose lowered her head.
"I sincerely apologize," she said. "I will look into this immediately after the meeting. But for now… can we please return to the topic at hand?"
Jonathan's eyes narrowed.
"So you want to gloss over my son being bullied?" he demanded. "Is that it? It's not important? Or is it because he's not fully Canadian? Does him being Japanese bother you?"
Mrs. Rose froze.
She swallowed hard, her voice strained when she spoke.
"Mr. Johnson… your words hurt me. I became an educator because I love children, all children. Being around them is my happy place. I do not look at race, gender, ethnicity, or religion."
She took a shaky breath.
"Believe me when I say this. I love Oden just as much as I love every other child here. Oden, in particular, is very smart. I enjoy working with children like him."
She paused.
"The reason I wanted to return to the topic… is because this meeting is not about bullying."
Her voice softened.
"It's about the cause of death of another student."
Jonathan opened his mouth to argue but Mia grabbed his shoulder firmly.
"Jonathan," she said quietly. "Calm down."
Officer Jeremy cleared his throat.
"…Okay," he said. "That was… something. Shall we continue?"
Just then—
a trembling voice cut through the room.
"I—it was me…"
Everyone turned.
"I—it's all my fault," the voice continued shakily. "I killed him."
That voice belonged to Oden.