Hidan no Aria: Requiem of a Lost Melody

1st Clip - "Amidst the Setting Sun"

"Mother's trial was postponed..." The small girl who was beside Kinji Tohyama, Aria H. Kanzaki said as she gazed towards the empty stretch of water before her, the bay's blue hue was in stark contrast against her scarlet colored eyes. "The incident this time proves that the 'Butei Killer' is the guilty one... And according to our lawyers, the trial may be postponed for over a year." She continued, throwing quick side glances towards the guy who was leaning against the terrace's rail guard, slumped over the edge, with a bandaged right arm and a number of band-aids stuck across his face.

"Is that so?" Kinji replied with a half-hearted tone, seemingly uninterested as he hung his head limply over the railings. "Good for you guys then..." He added, fixating his gaze on to Aria as he felt her gaze was planted on him as well.

Aria, who's gaze slowly swept across Tokyo bay, landed on the twisted and broken remains of the Boeing 737-350 which was entangled together with the wind turbine on the opposite side of Academy island, quickly shied away, momentarily casting her gaze downwards before looking up. "Hey, why did you... Chase me to the plane? Why did you save me?" She asked with slightly reddened cheeks.

Kinji's curiosity was piqued, '...Why, you ask? That kind of question.. Even I don't know the answer...' He thought as he continued to look into Aria's eyes, her gaze was almost full of sorrow and sadness. "...Well, I thought that since you were such an idiot, you would have no way of beating the 'Butei Killer', so I went." He finally replied, still with a bored tone of voice.

At that remark, Aria, who was now clenching her fingers into a small ball, grew more flustered. "Th-That person... I could've taken care of her myself. You're the real idiot." Fuming, she stomped the ground as she responded, catching Kinji's attention this time around.

This time, Kinji fully craned his head towards Aria, his forelocks which were a little bit on the longer side swayed back and forth with the wind, partly covering his left eye. "Well, that's true. I'm an idiot for saving another idiot like you." He ended with a sigh as he leaned using his elbows.

Then, Aria blinked a couple of times, her pink twin tails blown by the gentle wind as she casted her head downwards, her fringe covering both of her eyes yet still showed the blatant redness of her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I was lying." She softly said in an almost inaudible voice.

"About what?" After a couple of seconds, Kinji replied, surprised about Aria's declaration.

Aria slowly clasped her hands together before releasing them, the index fingers of both her left and right hands linked together. "When I said, I could've taken care of her by myself..." She then looked up into the sky, sighing before continuing, "...I understand now. I understand now why I need a 'partner'. I also understand that there are things that I can't do by myself. If you weren't there, I would definitely..."

She was holding back her tears, forcing a smile on her small glossy lips.

"-So today, I came to say goodbye." Aria ended weakly.

This was the first time that Kinji saw this kind of expression on Aria. This weak, almost helpless demeanor. But he can't help it, he wanted a normal life, away from all the commotions of the Butei world, away from danger, from blood... But still... "...Goodbye? What do you mean?" He can't help asking her, she was her 'partner' after all, even if it was just for a short amount of time.

Forcing herself to look up this time, traces of tears were on the edge of her eyes, which she promptly wiped before speaking, "I still have to find a 'partner'. I... Would prefer it if you were my partner, but... We had an agreement..."

Puzzled, Kinji tilted his head a little bit sideways, trying to remember what 'agreement' Aria was referring to, and in the end, he ended up just staying silent.

"We agreed that you would help me only once, remember?" Aria stated, leaning on the railway herself.

As if he was enlightened, Kinji remembered a couple of things that happened before that whole 'Butei Killer' incident. "Ah, yeah... That's right..." Mirroring Aria, he also leaned back into the railway, staring into Tokyo bay again, succumbing to his own laziness.

Yeah, she is right. They had an agreement that for one mission, and for just 'one' mission only, no matter how small or how huge it is, as long as all of the goals are met, it still counts as one mission, they will work together, helping each other. But after they accidentally got dragged into the whole 'Butei Killer' incident over the past week, they involuntarily accepted and completed a mission.

They won, they completed all the goals, eventually exposing the culprit's identity, even if she, Riko Mine; "Lupin the 4th" got away, they had plenty of leads. And thus, they completed their mission, releasing each other from their partnership.

"Butei Law Article 2; "You must fulfill all the contents of the contract in commission." Which we did with flying colors, so, in line with that, I won't approach you again..." Aria said, swaying, back on her feet, with both her hands behind her back. She opened her mouth a couple of times, but she decided against saying anything. Finally, after a couple of seconds of dead air between them, she looked at Kinji gravely. "...Kinji, you're an amazing Butei. So now, I will respect your decision, and I won't... Call you my slave anymore. So... If by any chance you ever change your mind... Then, come find me. But remember, I will always... Always... Have you as my..."

The words Aria spat towards him made his heart race, yet it still made it ache. Those words, as much as he wanted to respond to it, to her feelings, to her invitation, he just can't. His mind was already fixed on something.

"...Sorry."

Kinji turned his head away from Aria as a strong breeze brought from the bay swept past them, both of their hair fluttering against it, and is now in a mess.

His mind was fixed on dropping out as a Butei, he wanted to get out of this world, he wanted to run away, even if society ostracizes him for it, he doesn't care, besides, his brother's shadow is still...

Looking up with an expression of false happiness, Aria's lips struggled to curl upwards. "Do-Don't worry about it, since you aren't trying to hurt me. Well, you see, in the end..." Kinji's eyes darted towards her, her expression looked pitiful, as if she was trying her best to hide what she is really feeling. "...I am an 'Aria'. Please forget what I said just now..."

An 'Aria'. A part of a song wherein the singer performs a solo, without any accompanying instruments or whatnot. She compares her name to that music piece, with her being always alone on missions or whatever.

It pains Kinji deep inside, yet...

Aria turned around, then strode to the room. "-Ah! The April I spent here in Tokyo was horrible! I haven't managed to find a partner, my head was hurt, I got a scar, and I didn't even won a stuffed animal from a crane game!" Looking at her, it seems to look as if she was pretending to be fine but... I have to at least smile when I send her off, so I went back in the room as well and smiled at her, it's the only thing I can do now.

"If we ever meet again, I'll teach you how to grab a stuffed animal for yourself. But, that requires a lot of intuition. Haha." Kinji joked, scratching his head using his right hand pretending to be an idiot.

Flustered, Aria's head seemed to let off some steam as she placed both of her hands on her waist. "What do you mean by that? That my intuition was bad?" Her gaze directed at me, as sharp as her two wakizashis on her back. "If you dare look down on me, I'll blast holes in you! I'll blast 10 holes! No, I'll blast you until you look like Swiss Cheese!" Aria gnarled like a lion... Well, a lion cub that is.

Kinji just laughed along with her, trying to keep the mood happy, until the very end.

"Ah, is it this late already? Well, I have to go now..." Aria suddenly became quiet as she glanced at her wristwatch, which was worn with the face resting on her left wrist.

Snapped back into the reality of the situation in front of him, Kinji put on a serious face as he calmed down after laughing so much. "Do you have plans already?" He inquired, seeing Aria striding towards the couch, grabbing the pink and red checker patterned suitcase she brought when she first came over.

Without facing him, Aria, who's back was facing Kinji softly said, "Yeah. There's someone coming to pick me up. After all that happened, the London Butei Department is sending one of their helicopters in Tokyo to pick me up, which will then bring me to a British aircraft carrier, and I'll be boarding a jet back all the way to London, I think"

"Going back to London, huh..." Kinji sighed, exparated from Aria's speech.

"Well yeah, it's a given. Before Mother was arrested, I was an exceptional Butei there, so everybody wants me back to compensate for their uselessness." Aria then extended the handle of the suitcase and started dragging it across the room, towards the front door.

Resisting the urge to stop her, Kinji mustered all his courage to put on a smile. "...It would be good if you can find a 'partner' that will take care of you." He said, walking towards the door as well, where Aria is.

Continuing her slow pace, Aria placed her small right hand over the doorknob. "I'll definitely find one. Because of you, I know that there's one, somewhere out there in the world." She softly continued.

Kinji could feel his heart jumping up and down, aching yet, he placed his hand over Aria's hand, and shifted the doorknob downwards, making a clicking sound which made the door open. "Is that so... Yeah, that's right. Goodbye then, and good luck, Aria." He whispered near her ear.

"Yeah... Bye bye..." It was then that Aria trailed off, stepping away from Kinji Tohyama's dormitory room, her pink twin tails fluttering behind her.

Kinji didn't stop her.

The door clicked closed.

...

Standing behind the now closed door, Kinji tried to listen for Aria's footsteps, well, she needs to walk across the foyer towards the elevator to exit the building after all but, the footsteps never came. Curious, Kinji looked outside using the peephole..

"Uuu... Uu... Uuu... Uuuuu..."

Aria is crying on his front door, not moving a step away.

"I don't... Kinji, I don't... There won't be... Anyone like you... There definitely... Won't. I won't... Be able to find anyone..." Her crying voice was just like a child, as she continued to wipe away the tears that burst and streamed down her face as she stood alone amidst the now setting orange colored sun.

...Aria. Why... Are you crying? Weren't you smiling just now? Weren't you laughing so happily? So why... Why are you crying now?

Aria...

In the end, Kinji did not opened the door, he just sat behind it, his back leaning against it, clutching a piece of paper that was labeled "Butei High Transfer Record" to his chest, his eyes were teary yet, he didn't let a single drop fall, he won;t cry over this, no.

"Yeah, Aria... Go... And find your partner... A partner you can depend on, not someone as useless as me..." He whispered to himself as soon as he heard the light footsteps which seemed to echo through the empty dormitory hallway, gradually becoming softer and softer and after a while, it became silent.

Silence and solitude. Maybe this is what Aria had been feeling all along...

*CRRRACKK*

The sound of cracking bones resounded and echoed in the small, enclosed and dark room.

His vision was blurry, his consciousness was in a daze, he could even feel the iron-like taste of the warm liquid dripping down from his forehead. His arms and legs were numbed, possibly from the length of time he was bound in chains, held up in that pillar. His body endured pain, and not just any pain, it was that form of merciless pain inflicted by people who wanted to 'know' something, to people who are helplessly immobilized.

Yes, it was torture.

"If you would just spit out the answers to my questions, then we wouldn't be be doing this for this long, right, "Godspeed"?" Blurted by a hoarse voice that he doesn't know who or even where it came from, followed by the gnashing sound of his own knuckles, cracking them.

Then came another fist, thundering down on his right cheek, crashing and burning, probably even leaving a wide bruise.

"I will repeat it again. Where. Is. The. Scarlet. Ammo?" The grouchy and overweight guy who fished out a brass knuckle said, slipping the armament over his fist.

"I... Don't... I don't.. Know..." Was the weak reply of the chained man, obviously exhausted from the ordeal he was going through.

*THUNK*

The blunt sound again echoed throughout the room, it's relentless tone resounded loudly as blood splattered across the ground, drenching the dusty concrete with warm red liquid.

"I will repeat this again and again until you spit it out, or until your life extinguishes." Grumbled the brass knuckle wielding guy, as he readied for another swing.

"Please... Just... Kill me... End... This misery..." The chained man said to himself, his voice completely devoid of feelings.

"I deeply apologized for the bumpy ride, Miss Kanzaki." The man who was wearing a pure white captain's uniform said as he saluted before the small, pink headed girl in front of him, while the rest of the crew went on their usual business of unloading and reloading stuff into the ship.

"It's okay, Captain Harvey, you have my deepest thanks for the lift and for the luxuries you and your crew provided me. Again, thank you and I'm off, you guys take care as well!" Replied Aria, who was now wearing simple civilian clothing -a white one-piece dress with a matching wide-rimmed black sunglasses and brown hat, as she lifted a part of her skirt in a courtesy manner.

"The pleasure is all ours, my lady. Please, use us, me and the crew of the HMS Refraction as you see fit. Well off you go then, you take care as well, and just send my regards to the London Butei Branch!" Taking off his hat as a sign of respect, the one called "Captain Harvey" said with a smile fixed to his wrinkled face, a sign of age, of wisdom and experience.

Then, towing her pink and red checkered suitcase behind her, Aria walked down the ship's boarding platform towards the docks, where a man wearing a black suit was standing in rigid attention beside a black Ashton Martin V8 DB9 parked just a little bit away from the docks itself. A few seconds later, Aria arrived at the car, and was greeted by the man who was waiting.

"Good morning, Miss Kanzaki. I am James, your chauffeur for today, pleased to meet your acquaintance. I presume we are off to the Butei Branch, am I correct?" The man in black who almost had an aura of being an undercover agent who called himself 'James' said as he opened the backseat doors for the young lady.

"Yes, and please make it quick, I am dead tired." Replied Aria as she entered the car, feeling the refreshing breeze of the air-con which was on full blast to combat the heat of the sun which towered upon them.

"Noted. Please enjoy the ride." The smiling chauffeur said as he shut the car's door gently before going in to the driver's seat and speeding off, the car's monstrous V8 engine making little to no noise yet performed and lived up to it's name.

Inside, Aria sat in a relaxed manner, yet still in a way a dignified noble would, her legs crossed together and she was sitting erect. Her eyes darted off the tinted window, noticing the scenery brushing past her; the usual streets of London in it's early morning ruckus, refreshing, she thought, to be at home.

The past few months she spent in Tokyo were filled with a lot of memories. From the things she learned in Assault (even though she already knows almost 90% of it), to the friends she met from Inquesta, Connect, Informa, Amdo, Logi and Medica, she really had a blast, even though it was short, she was happy, it was time well spent. Even the missions she had taken part in, although most of them were brief, it was still fun. Even though... She hasn't completely cleared her Mother's name, even if she had reduced her sentence from 846 years down to 765, she's not contented.

Let's say she was hellbent on making sure her Mother gets out of the stinkhole called prison.

And above all, she was disappointed. Deeply disappointed that she wasn't able to get a 'partner'. A 'partner' whom she can depend on, trust with her back, provide support. She failed miserably even though she had her sights set on Kinji Tohyama, which had this weird 'split personality' which at some point, always comes and saves the day. Even if she still doesn't know how to trigger it, she was still pretty confident that he will make a good partner.

But then again, even if he was a really good Butei, even if he has a lot of potential, he chose to quit it. That's what she can't understand. Why, why doesn't he use his abilities in service to others? She just can't fathom the entire reason why he refused to do so...

She was really disappointed... She even anticipated that he will come and get her at the last minute but, he didn't. He decided to just quit everything, forget about it and just live normally. Just as when she finally found a person whom she was comfortable with, someone who really cared for her as being 'Aria', and not because she was 'Holmes'. A person who looked past her lineage and treated her as an equal, he was something... He was different. He had this charm that may have captivated her maiden heart, Aria can't explain it, what more put it into words but...

Whenever she was with Kinji, her heart raced.

And it was yearning for more.

"We have arrived, my lady." Just as she was beginning to doze off from the fatigue of traveling almost half the world around, the chauffeur called on her as the car stopped in front of a building, a rather old-fashioned one, with the words "London Butei Branch" written in bold and cursive font on it's entrance.

"Oh yeah. Thanks. James, please wait for me, I won't be long, I just need to let them know I arrived safely." Saying that, Aria exited the car and made her way inside the building, her white dress fluttering beautifully behind her along with her pink twin tails.

The interior of the building was surprisingly, more advanced compared to it's exterior. The reception was rather nice and it almost projected the aura of being a five star hotel. Aria walked towards the counter with a confident expression, catching the eyes of almost everyone in the vicinity, most likely because of her elegant yet flamboyant appearance. Upon arriving at the desk, she was promptly greeted by the female receptionist, her pointy-rimmed glasses gave off an aura of being strict yet she spoke with a gentle tone of voice.

"We have been expecting you, Miss Kanzaki. Welcome back." The receptionist greeted her as she scanned the little girl in front of her, realizing in just mere seconds that she is London Butei Branch's top 'S' ranked Butei, Aria H. Kanzaki. "Please, feel at home, and I believe the Masters at the back have been waiting for your safe return, be sure to drop by." She added, gesturing towards the back offices.

"Thank you, Miss Mariane, it's nice to see this place hasn't changed one bit. I'll be seeing the Masters now." After a simple courtesy bow, Aria headed towards where she was directed, towards the back office, the Master's office, leaving behind a surprised Mariane, because she haven't even introduced herself to her.

The Masters. People who manage the whole Butei front, people who have achieved something really incredible inside the organization, people who hold the most dangerous arsenal of skills in the entire Butei organization. They are the ones who become mentors to younger Butei, the people who conduct stuff behind the shadows, basically, they are the ones who hold the most power and authority inside.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

After two quick raps on the door, Aria was given the go signal to enter the chamber. She opened the door slowly, deciding to resist the urge to peek using just her head, she walked inside, the heeled pair of white shoes she was wearing made light clicking noises as she did. "Hello Masters, I, Aria Holmes Kanzaki, daughter of the Kanzaki family and the 4th descendant of Sherlock Holmes have arrived safely, and as of 0945am today, is resuming duty as a Butei in service of the London Butei Branch." Aria roughly did an introduction of herself, her posture a lot more different from her goofy self.

One of the finely suited middle-aged gentleman wearing a top hat, a monocle and was holding a cane, glared up, still holding his cup of tea. "Welcome back, daughter of Holmes, I see you have been well. How was Japan?" He asked, his tone of voice projecting an aura of authority.

Just then, a female who was wearing short sleeved jackets and a tube-like inner shirt stood up, gathering her hair as she did before clipping it back. "My, my, if it isn't Aria-chan! Welcome back! How was Japan?" She happily inquired as she walked over to Aria, patting her head. Yeah, she did removed her hat beforehand as a sign of respect.

"Thank you for the warm welcome everyone, I am fine as always, and Japan was really nice, although it has a different charm from our country, it has this sort of oriental ring to it and it was a rather nice change of pace..." Aria answered, her cheeks reddened and her lips were definitely showing signs of happiness.

Out of the four people inside the room, besides the two who already spoke up, the rest of them just kept quiet.

Until a few seconds after, when a younger male, who's wearing a white lab-coat spun his chair around as he fixed the rim of his glasses upwards, his slanted thin eyes gave a glare that is somewhat, scary, well at least to Aria, where it was directed now. "...Have you found a partner yet?" He asked, his voice was low and menacing, as if it came from the grave or something.

The flushed red Aria lost her redness in an instant as soon as she heard that dreaded question.

'Partner'.

"I... I... I tried b-but..." Came her weak reply, her confidence shattered, all she did was slightly tremble, rooted to where she was.

"But what? Nothing? Just how many times have you failed now? And how many times do you plan to fail?" The lab-coat wearing guy stammered, obviously pissed off as he slammed his hand off his desk, making clattering sounds thanks to the random stuff lying around his messy space.

"Calm down, Luke, she just arrived, she must be tired. She must have an explanation to all of this but let's save that later, okay?" Now the jacket-wearing lady intervened, sending off more frightening waves of aura compared to the lab-coat guy. "Aria-chan, please forgive Luke-kun here, we are sorry, let's just say, we are way too excited for you haha~" She trailed off, while still throwing a piercing glance towards the guy named Luke.

"I-it's okay, Miss Summers, i-it's m-my fault anyways..." Calming down, Aria replied in a soft voice, her fatigue gradually sinking in, her knees slightly going into a wobbling state.

Then, a cold voice resonated, it was from the fourth person, who's chair was still turned against all of them. "Do as you wish, descendant of the great Sherlock Holmes, take your time on finding your partner, or you even have an option of not getting one; it all depends on you. As long as you complete your assigned missions properly, then there won't be any problems, right?" The unknown guy said without even moving one muscle in his body, which was hidden from the rest of them.

"See, Aria-chan? I told you it's going to be alright, as the Chairman said!" The one Aria addressed as Miss Summers replied this time, her gaze gradually shifting towards Aria, brimming with happiness as she continued to stroke the pink headed lolita.

With fumbling hands, Aria seemed to have completely calmed down now. "Y-yeah... Okay... But I'll do my best... T-"

"-Yeah! You should really do your best because we have a new mission for you right off the hook!" Shouted Luke, who was still standing up with his hands flatly planted on the desk. "...And we can't afford to fail this one! Can you handle it, Aria the Quadra?"He asked, leering towards Aria.

"...It would be good if you can find a 'partner' that will take care of you."

At that instant, Kinji's words suddenly rang inside her head, the words that brought pain into her heart. The words that she didn't expected to hear, specially not from someone like Kinji. To be honest, yeah, she had her hopes high, so high that when the bubble burst, it hurt her. Along with the fact that she even hoped that he will come running to her until the very last second as the helicopter took her away.

Still, there was none.

There was no Kinji who sought for her.

But still, she didn't loose hope. She will find a partner, and she will show Kinji that she really can, even if it's not him.

"That goes without question. I will complete each and every mission assigned to me without fail!" Aria exclaimed as she puffed out her (non-existant) chest out, her right hand clenched into a fist was buried into the left section of her chest. "And I will find the one destined for me as well!"

A/N: Hello! This is Seiji once again, and here I bring you my second fanfic! -insertpartypoppersoundshere- Hooray! I hope fans of the series will start to like this, even if I'll be changing the story MASSIVELY right off the bat. Oh yeah, this story happens right after the 'Butei Killer' incident, without changing anything from the start until the end, and yeah, the first block of text you see was from the novel, although I improved it and made it into something that's actually got content, please don't sue me okay? Anyways, please look forward to more of this, along with my other fanfic, "Accel World: The Wings of Time", I'll be working on both of them, but will focus on Accel World, since I only made this Hidan no Aria fic for a female friend who really liked the series. Thank you for reading! Don't forget to drop reviews!