In the case of this fic, just pretend EVERYTHING after Himari and Ringo wake up on that train in the last episode never happened.

There was no note that made her remember Shouma and Kanba, there was no reincarnations of them, they just simply disappeared into an alternate reality and became something like ghosts in the world where Ringo and Himari live freely now.


He had always watched over her.

From the time he had first laid eyes on her, he knew he loved her, there was not a single doubt in his young mind. She extended her hand in kindness, placing a band-aid over a wound that did not show on skin, but pained him all the same. Despite being such a dark, dismal time and despite everything that he would need to sacrifice, his world had felt just a little bit brighter, simply because she was in it. Everything had changed.

No one seemed to understand that a mere child could truly love another so deeply, so truly, but he did. Himari was everything and he would do anything to keep her safe. No matter who denied his feelings, who insisted that they were wrong, he knew that he had, and always would, give her everything.

His heart.

His mind.

His soul.

He had died for her, after all.

No, he corrected himself as he watched her stumble forward, his heart wrenching painfully as he watched the trail of blood race down her arm and drip from her finger. He had given up his existence for her, a fate far more cruel then simply dying. She didn't know who he was or that he had ever been, what he had done for her or how much he loved her. To her, he was nothing but a blank space in her life. A fleeting moment in time that she never even knew was there. Little more than a dream.

There was no Kanba Takakura.

There never had been and never would be.

Not in this timeline, anyways.

But he remembered her. He still, after all this time, all these horribly painful years, did his best to protect her. He followed her and comforted her at times when she was vulnerable in sleep. While she was awake, he was invisible, unable to make any form of contact but he certainly liked to believe that some tiny, subconscious part of her was at least vaguely aware of his presence.

But while she slept, he would often visit her in her dreams. Himari suffered from horrible nightmares, ones filled with shapeless shadows and pain, but his presence in her mind always chased them away. Her invisible knight, performing his noble duties without fail, much to the unknowing comfort of his princess.

It was the one thing managing to keep him sane and yet, every day it hurt worse when she could not recall him when she woke.

He knew what he was giving up when he saved her life. He knew. He would do it again in a heartbeat.

But damn, it hurt so badly...

Yet, after all that work, after all he had given up, here she stood before him. Beaten, bloodied and still ready to die far too young. The thought made him flood with rage, his wrath terrible and yet completely unable to manifest itself. He was little more then a ghost that had never been.

Himari had been pulled in by a boy named Kenji, something that he never would have allowed if he had lived. Her parents hadn't seen the signs, hadn't paid enough attention, but he would have. He would have saved her, protected her from harm. He would have been far more careful and Himari would have been safe.

Now, he was little more then a bystander, not even capable of warning her.

She had fallen for Kenji, quite hard, and despite his immense jealousy Kanba could not deny the happiness he brought her. But Kenji soon began to show a different side of himself, a side that was too harsh and wild for such a fragile person like Himari. He was suffocating her, his possessive and abusive nature finally making itself known when he had hit her for the very first time.

The first time he hit her, she had been chatting with a male student in her grade. She had been assigned to be the boys class partner and, being Himari, she charmed him immediately. And, being Himari, she never noticed. But he did. Kenji demanded she request a new partner and when she questioned him, he had slapped her harshly across the cheek. With Kanba raging in unreleaseable fury, Himari was forced to approach the teacher the next day to ask for a new partner.

She never breathed a word to anyone. But he knew.

The second time he had been having a bad day. He had been fired from his job and came upon her doorstep, of course on a night when her parents were out. Before she could even ask what was wrong he laid into her, taking advantage of her small, weaker frame to overpower her and made her into his new whimpering punching bag.

Still, Kanba could do nothing more then shout and cry and beg, trying desperately to find some way to save her.

But he never could.

The boy left her crying into her pillow long into the night, covered in bruises, hurting, and still trying to muffle her whimpers. She had long sobbed herself to sleep by the time her parents arrived home, none the wiser to their daughter's plight.

She had cried till she had no tears left.

Kanba felt he could do the same.

The problem escalated. Himari, his brave, beautiful, wonderful Himari, was slowly being reduced to a shell of her former self. Yet, no one around her noticed? How could they not? How could they not see!

Was this the life he had sacrificed himself for? For her to be, dare he say it, more miserable then before? Residing in simply another form of Hell.

Life simply wasn't fair.

Yet, it marched on, heedless to both their sufferings.

Her nose was bleeding heavily as she ran, the crimson dripping off her elbow as she tried to stem the flow. Her muffled sobs broke through her hand as she tried to hide in a small closet, closing the door behind her with a muffled snap. She could hear him tromping around the house upstairs, calling her name and demanding she reveal herself. Himari collapsed, pulling herself into a ball.

"Himari..." Kanba whispered, wishing more than anything that he could be there with her, to protect her from all that tried to cause her harm. He tried to touch her, to make her know she wasn't alone, but like always he was completely helpless. He could do nothing but watch.

She hiccupped, tears still flowing heavily as she grabbed a jacket, pressing it to her face and soaking up a lot of blood, attempting to stop the blood from pouring out her nose. Kenji had punched her right in the face, a move that had taken her cruelly by surprise. Normally he always avoided her face, but his rage had blinded him from the consequences. If he didn't care about the wounds being shown, it was even less likely that he would stop before things got out of hand.

Even now, just upstairs, he was still baying for blood. She considered making a run for the door, but with his house on a large estate, she would never make it to the gates before he caught her. For all the Himari was, athletic was not one of them.

"HIMARI!"

She whimpered again, her mind working a mile a minute. She fumbled through the closet, feeling for a weapon and coming up empty. Nothing but jackets and shoes, things that would only serve to enrage him further if thrown in his direction.

"HIMARI, COME BACK THIS INSTANT!" Kenji demanded, his voice turning hoarse from rage. Kanba felt his entire presence tighten, his mind burning with loathing. He would kill him, he swore he would kill him! "This isn't a game! Get your pitiful ass out here!"

Himari made an attempt to stand, wondering if perhaps there was something on a shelf above her head that she had missed that could save her. She staggered, the dizziness throwing off her balance before she collapsed again, dragging the hanging coats down with her, the clatter echoing throughout the house.

Everything froze.

If Kanba had been breathing, he would have stopped.

Himari's eyes widened in fear, before turning to complete panic when the footsteps changed direction, heading purposefully towards the staircase.

"No..." She sobbed, shaking hands searching the dark for something, anything. "No, please..."

Stomp, stomp, stomp.

Right down the stairs, turning the corner at the bottom and heading for the door.

No, don't do this... Kanba pleaded, wishing more then anything that he could hold the door shut, to shield her from the blows that were sure to come, to beat that damned Kenji until he could beg no more. It can't end like this...

The handle turned.

She will not die!

The door flung open.

Not again! He did not give up everything for it to still end like this!

Light flooded in and revealed a quivering Himari.

NO!

Kenji sneered down at her, ignoring her shriek of pain as he grabbed her long, beautiful hair. She begged and pleaded for release, but he only drug her to the stairs, pulling her up purposefully as she attempted to gain her footing and fight against him.

"Please, Kenji, don't do this!"

"Quiet, Himari, you brought this on yourself."

He stepped upwards, dragging her upstairs along with him. He'd make her regret trying to run from him.

"I don't understand, what have I-"

"SHUT UP!"

"NO!"

The boy froze, the enraged shout echoing through the hall as loud as a clap of thunder. Even Himari ceased her struggling, shocked by the sudden outburst.

He only caught a mere glimpse of red and green before he found himself flying through the air, an invisible force slamming him to the floor. Kenji's blue eyes widened in disbelief, his mind hazy from the force of the blow and yet, there seemed to be nothing around the caused it. He caught sight of Himari still on the floor, pushing herself up on her elbows, her eyes wide with shock. If it wasn't her, the wh-

BASTARD!

Something hard and solid collided with his jaw with alarming force, whipping his head to the side and slamming his cheek into the hardwood floor, the thunk of it echoing through his ear. Another blow collided with his side, flinging him into a wall and knocking the wind out of him before another force hit him squarely in the nose, enough to practically shatter it, blood welling forth and springing from his nostrils like a kitchen faucet.

His vision flickered as shaky hands rose to his face, his mind foggy as he tried to focus above him, looking for his invisible attacker. For a split second, he could have sworn he saw a hazy figure, a pair of hateful green eyes and the bottom of a shoe speeding towards his face at an alarming rate before something slammed into his skull.

His eyes shuttered, his eyelids fluttering before he passed out.


Himari watched in disbelief as her attacker was defeated by seemingly nothing. She would have thought it was her mind playing tricks on her, the way his side indented as if kicked or his nose breaking from nothing, but when he finally laid unconscious on the ground, she couldn't fight the feeling that realistically, she should be terrified. But she wasn't.

She rested her hands on the stairs, her eyes wide with disbelief as she regarded the boy she had trusted and feared, defeated and broken. No doubt it would be quite some time before he awoke again and when he did... She would not want to be him. Sore did not begin to describe the extent of his trauma. Already bruises were blossoming across his skin.

She attempted to stand, despite her light-headed state before slipping on the stair, pitching forward towards the floor. She barely had a moment to release a small shriek of panic before she was stopped in midair.

Careful, Himari.

She froze, wondering if the voice in her head had been her imagination. What was she talking about, of course it was he-

He's not a danger to you anymore, Himari, and if I have my way, he'll never lay a damn finger on you ever again. I'm sorry I couldn't do it earlier, I just... Didn't know I could.

"Wha-... What?" She whispered, backing away from the mystery force and pressing her palms to her ears. Hearing voices? She must have hit her head harder then she thought!

What's wrong? Himari, are you okay?

"Who are you!" She demanded, her hands shaky and her voice quivering. "Where are you? Where did you come from?"

There was a pause of silence and for a moment, she thought it had stopped.

Wait... You can hear me?

"Yes!" She retorted, wondering how on Earth she could hear a voice so clear when she tried so desperatly to deafen it, "What are you? Are you a ghost? Why are you here?"

She froze when she heard a small sound that could only be described as a sob, and yet there was an undertone to it that she couldn't quite place. Something that made her think it wasn't a sound made from sadness. It sounded something like disbelief and perhaps... Joy?

You can hear me... After all of this time... Himari...

"I don't understand." She replied, her fear slowly ebbing away despite herself. Whatever it was, it obviously did not mean her harm. "What ar-"

This is impossible... Please, just let me ask... Do the names Kanba and Shouma mean anything to you?

The tone was so hopeful that she almost felt ashamed at the thought of disappointing the specter. "N-No... Should they?"

The voice breathed deeply as if sighing. Disappointment, she knew. No, it's not any of your fault Himari. I just... Nevermind. Are you alright?

"A bit sore and my nose is still bleeding but... I am okay." She told the voice warily, a slight quiver in her lip betraying how close she was to tears. She hesitated for a moment, hugging herself and unsure of where to look when speaking to it... Him. The voice was definitely a him. "May I ask what you are?"

The voice paused. When it answered, it seemed almost as unsure as she did. I suppose you could call me a ghost.

"Oh." She responded, surprised at how the information gave her no alarm. Despite her initial fear, she was finding the presence more calming by the second. Almost familiar. "Why are you here?"

To protect you. I'm always with you. I exist... Merely for you, Himari. Whether you know whom I am or not.

"Oh." She responded, feeling a touch overwhelmed. It was all happening so fast, it was all very confusing. This morning she awoke thinking she was going on a date, only to be beaten and bloodied and then saved by a ghost... Or a guardian angel. As a matter of fact, she was honestly questioning her sanity. "Umm, well... Thank you for saving me, um...?"

...Kanba. He answered her hesitantly, unsure of himself. My name is Kanba.

"Kanba-san." She replied, testing his name on her tongue. She glanced down at Kenji. "I should probably call him an ambulance."

After you're somewhere safe!

She jumped at his raised volume, the fury in his voice shocking her slightly. "Alright, I don't live far from here, I can call them from my home phone. My parents aren't home bu-"

Then you call contact an ambulance from the room upstairs. I assume it's his parents room? There's a lock on the door that you can shut behind you, as well as a phone. If he wakes up, he won't be able to reach you there and even if he does... I will handle it.

Kanba's voice was firm and leaving no room for negotiation. Himari nodded slowly, giving Kenji and hesitant last look before stepping slowly upstairs, wincing as pain shot through her rib cage. She stumbled down the sidewalk to the gates of the estate, pushing them open and pausing for a moment to catch her breath, feeling nauseous.

Himari, what can I do to help? I don't really know what I can do, but... Dammit, I'm so useless! I would offer to carry you but I'm not quite so confident in myself that I wouldn't accidentally drop you, I'm not sure how much I can give...

"No, Kanba-san, you saved me today." She soothed, limping but moving steadily up the stairs, sighing as she reached the top. She limped to the bedroom as fast as she could, giving the unmoving form of Kenji one last glance before rushing into the room and closing the door behind her. "You've done more then enough. Without you there, I might be... Very hurt."

I'm glad I could do something useful, for once.

She reached for the phone, pressing 911.

"Hello, this is the emergency response line, what is your emergency?"

"My boyfriend... Well, not my boyfriend anymore, he's unconscious downstairs." Himari whimpered slightly, rubbing her scalp absent-mindedly, it still stinging from Kenji's grab at her hair. "He attacked me and was fighting with me, dragging me upstairs when I started fighting against him and he fell. He's not moving right now but he is breathing, he seems to be fairly heavily injured. I'm not much better. Please send help."

"It's alright Ma'am." The other voice told her calmly, "Are you in a secure place? If he wakes up, can he get to you?"

"No, I'm in a locked room."

"Good, very good. Now please, give me the address and we will be there as soon as we can."

"Thank you."

Kanba heaved a sigh of relief, convinced now that Himari was finally safe. The sight of her bruises and her bloodied face was enough to make him want to go downstairs and finish the job, but he held himself steady at Himari's side. She needed him more now. The fact that he could finally communicate with her, talk with her, protect her...

It filled him with a light that had been extinguished for so long...

And yet, he could not fight down the insistent feeling of dread.

This was all too good to be true and as such, it had to be.

For now, he would enjoy his time together with Himari, until the bomb would no doubt drop once more.