I was trudging back home from school, my backpack hanging from one shoulder as my boots crunched through the snow.
The streets were unusually quiet.
Too quiet.
The afternoon light was fading, turning the snow orange and gray as I walked. I was thinking about school, homework, dinner, and whether I could somehow convince my parents that homework was scientifically bad for my health.
Then I noticed someone walking beside me.
A random guy.
He was wearing a ridiculously thick bear-fur coat.
Seriously.
It looked like something a caveman would wear while hunting mammoths.
His beard was wild, his glasses were fogged up, and half of his beard was covered in tiny bits of frozen snow.
I stared at him.
He stared straight ahead.
We kept walking.
I decided to ignore him.
Maybe he was just some weird neighbor.
Then he suddenly grabbed my shoulders.
"FOGO!"
I nearly jumped out of my boots.
"WHAT?!"
"FOGO! FOGO FOGO FOGO FOGO FOGO FOGO FOGO FOGO!"
He shook me like I was a soda bottle.
"STOP!"
My teeth rattled.
"FOGO!"
"Yes! That's my name! You don't have to keep saying it!"
He finally let go.
I stumbled backward and rubbed my shoulders.
"Sir... is there something I can help you with?"
He stared at me through his foggy glasses.
"I want Fogo!"
I blinked.
"...You found him."
"You know Fogo?!"
"I am Fogo!"
His eyes widened.
"You?"
He stepped closer.
"YOU are Fogo?"
"Yes."
"Tom Fogo?"
"Yes."
"The last Nature Breathing user?"
I froze.
"...The what?"
The man's expression changed instantly.
It was like he'd just discovered the world's greatest treasure.
"YOU DON'T KNOW?!"
"Know what?"
He grabbed my shoulders again.
"Nature Breathing!"
"Okay, first of all, stop grabbing me!"
He released me.
I took several steps backward.
"Second... what exactly is Nature Breathing?"
The man stared at me.
"You really don't know."
"No."
He looked genuinely shocked.
"That's impossible."
"Well, apparently I'm very talented at being impossible."
He ignored my comment and pointed at me.
"You're the last one."
"The last what?"
"The last user."
"Of Nature Breathing?"
"Yes!"
I stared at him.
Then at the snow.
Then back at him.
This guy was either completely insane...
or knew something I didn't.
Before I could ask another question, he suddenly pressed his thumb against the right side of my forehead.
"Ow!"
Then he poked my cheek.
"Ow! Stop!"
He examined me like I was some strange science experiment.
"Interesting..."
"What is interesting?!"
He poked my cheek again.
"OW!"
"Definitely him."
"Who?!"
He suddenly stepped back.
For a moment, neither of us said anything.
Then he turned around.
And ran.
Just...
ran.
His giant bear-fur coat flapped behind him as he disappeared down the snowy street.
I stood there completely speechless.
"...What just happened?"
I looked down at my hands.
Then back at the direction he'd gone.
"Nature Breathing?"
I'd never heard those words before.
Yet somehow, that man had been absolutely certain that I was connected to it.
I pulled out my phone.
I considered calling the police.
Then I stopped.
What was I even supposed to tell them?
"Hello, officer. A crazy guy wearing a bear coat just attacked me, called me the last Nature Breathing user, poked my face, and ran away."
Yeah.
That sounded completely normal.
I put my phone away.
"Whatever."
I started walking home again.
But this time, I kept looking over my shoulder.
Because one thought wouldn't leave my mind.
Who was that guy?
And more importantly...
How did he know my name?