Summary: Following the premature deaths of her family, Kagome lets herself get swept up into the Port Mafia, having nowhere else she can go. At first glance, she's the same as she once was, but another look shows her metamorphosis into something beautifully deceptive. Loss can be so devastating and sometimes changing is the only way to survive.

Pairing: Chuuya x Kagome

Disclaimer: I don't own either series. Each belongs to their rightful owners.

Notice:
Past/Flashbacks written in bulk Italics.

Prologue

She almost felt as if she was stuck in some terrible nightmare that she couldn't wake up from. The red that covered her soaked into her clothing, stuck to her skin, matted in her hair, and left her a mess. From her crouched position next to the well house, she could see the limp and laying bodies scattered around the shrine grounds, but she didn't care about those people. Just inside the shrine's main building were the scattered bodies of her family, cold and laying in pools of blood.

Kagome covered her ears with her hands and squeezed her eyes shut, wanting nothing more than to shut this nightmare out. Tears fell freely down her cheeks, running over streaks of drying blood in the process.

"It's not real… it's not real," she whispered, repeating it like a mantra and silently praying that she was right. That none of this was real, and that she was just having a horrible dream.

She had just gotten back. How could things go so wrong on what was supposed to be a good day?

She was stuck inside her own head, trapped so deep in her mind that she didn't notice the aura steadily climbing up the steps in the distance. Nor did she notice when the newcomer came to stand over her after a few minutes of surveying the area.

Chuuya eyed the small girl oblivious to him, her body contorted and folded into a small ball. Even with her face hidden by her hair and blood covering her, he was able to recognize her easily. For the longest time now, the Port Mafia had kept her in their sights. She was a strange girl with strange abilities to match.

Every time anyone approached her, she'd manage to evade them and get away without any challenge.

Though…

He glanced around at the mass of bodies lying dead and still before looking back at her, noting her to be the cause of their deaths.

Considering she never even tried killed anyone in the mafia, they were lucky after crossing her.

Despite the time that had gone by since any one of them had gone to locate her, she was still a sought-after asset the boss was chasing after. Chuuya crouched down across from her, steadying himself easily as he snapped his fingers a few times to get her attention on him. "Oi. Look here."

She tensed some before finally letting blue eyes land on his face, a mix of emotions flashing through them before settling on a glimmer of perplexion. "Why are you here?" She recognized him enough to know what organization he belonged to, though that was all she could tell from him.

"I was tracking a group getting in the way of mafia business, but I come to find them all dead at your hands."

She froze up some more at the accusation in his words. She looked to her hands, the deep crimson long-since dried to her palms and fingers. Before she could say anything, or even search for the words, he held up a bloodied knife. Right away she knew it was her own.

She downcast her gaze. "Well, I guess I made your job easier."

"Yeah, you did," he responded without any hesitation. "Either way, they were gonna die. You just beat me to it."

Kagome felt anguish clawing it's way back up her spine. The entire thing was a haze in her head. She couldn't remember snapping, and she couldn't remember killing the people in question. All she remembered was finding the bodies of her family, and then collapsing into a ball in this spot. Everything else was gone. Still, even if she killed them, she wasn't upset about it. "They deserved what they got…" she said then, no remorse located in her words.

Chuuya watched her silently for a moment as she muttered those words. He wasn't about to disagree with her. After a few minutes of silence, he stood back up.

"I have an offer for you," he said, but she didn't look back at him. She was still listening to him, however. He set a hand on his hip as he looked down at her. "You can either join the Port Mafia, or-"

"Yeah, fine, whatever," she mumbled without giving it any thought. She figured the subject would get brought up, so she wasn't taken by surprise when he made the comment.

"You agreed so easily?" Confusion seeped into his words, but he wasn't about to overlook a good thing.

"Not like I have anywhere else to go," she mumbled. "Why should I run if I have nowhere to escape to?"

Chuuya reached a hand out for her to take, and she hesitantly took it after a moment's contemplation. He steadied her on her feet with a touch of gentleness she was grateful for.

"You should go and pack a few things you'll need or want. When you're ready, we'll leave."

Though he didn't vocalize it, he was offering her the chance and giving her time to say a final goodbye. She thought about it. She glanced at the wide-open front door, about to go towards it before she vehemently shook her head.

"No. I'm not going back in there," she said, firmly denying the idea altogether. "Not while they're… while they…"

Chuuya turned to her and he spotted her standing with her hands gripping into her skirt. More tears built up in her eyes, this time none falling before she pushed them away. He sighed and looked her over. After a few seconds, he shrugged his coat from his shoulders and handed it off to her.

"Put it on and button it up," he ordered.

Kagome complied and did as he said, buttoning the coat up until the last button. It hid her clothing from view completely.

Chuuya stepped up to her and rubbed some of the semi-dried blood from her cheek, doing the same to her other one as he let out a noise of approval. "Good enough," he said after letting his hand drop. "It'll hide the blood on your clothes, so the main problem is solved."

With those words, he gripped her upper arm and tugged her up to his side as he started walking. Having no other choice, she fell into step with him.

"Come on."

After a lengthy, quiet walk they arrived at a large building. He didn't wait before he pulled her along with him inside.

She could feel many different auras scattered about the entire place. The many different people were complete strangers to her, and she clung a bit tighter to Chuuya without meaning to so she wouldn't somehow get separated from his side.

Only when he led her into a different area did he finally let go of her. The door was closed behind him, and Kagome very quickly realized this place was an apartment.

She was left standing there awkwardly, unsure of what she should do as he walked by her and down the hall. She wasn't alone for long before he returned. He handed her a shirt, which she very quickly placed to belong to him, and motioned to a closed room down the way he had gone.

"Get a shower and clean yourself up," he said. "If I'm not back yet when you get out, just stay here. I'll be back soon," he said as he pushed his way past her.

"Okay…" she managed to say before he was out the door.

She found her way to the bathroom and pushed the door closed. Once inside, she stripped and dropped the unsalvageable articles of clothing to the side, keeping her undergarments for when she got out so she'd have something more than his offered shirt to wear.

Kagome stepped under the warm stream of water and set to washing the blood from her skin and hair.

"If this isn't a pleasant surprise, then I don't know what is," Mori said, grinning happily at the news of their newest addition. After so long of her rejecting and avoiding even just a little contact, the small girl had agreed to join, at long last. "A very good surprise, indeed," he hummed. A second later he leaned back in his chair. "Now what to do with her?" he asked himself.

"I want her in my care," Chuuya said. His words brought Mori's attention back to him. After a moment or two of silent thinking, he nodded.

"I don't see why not," he said, shrugging jovially. "You managed to bring her in. Keeping her under your wing seems like a fitting reward." He folded his hands on the top of his desk after making his decision. "When you think she is in a good enough state, bring her to me. I'd very much like to talk to her one-on-one. However, I can wait until her mood has improved. There isn't any rush- yet."

"Yes, Boss."

When he arrived back some few hours later, he was greeted to the sight of her curled up on the corner of the couch with her legs tucked under her and her arms supporting her head on the armrest. She didn't stir any when he let the door close behind him. She remained asleep, and he debated on waking her up now or letting her sleep a bit longer.

He set the bag he held on the table. Before coming back, he had chosen to get a few things she'd be needing from her old location. The clothing he got would suffice for now. At least until he got her out to buy some.

He eyed her a bit longer before deciding to let her keep sleeping. He'd make her get up later, but, in the meantime, she could stay like that.

With that decision, he left the room to take his own shower.

The red ribbon in her hair tangled itself together with the black strands, and she gave a hiss as she attempted to unweave it from its tangled mess. Nimble fingers set to work on pulling it free.

Kagome looked over her reflection in the mirror as she busied herself with the task of fixing up her ribbon. She was already completely dressed head to toe, save for her finicky ribbon. For the tenth time, she tried to tie it into her hair without messing it up. Much to her annoyance, it didn't work. She yanked it free and puffed her cheeks out in a pout.

"Fuck it," she muttered under her breath. She gave up on fixing it into her hair, and she instead tied it around her neck. The bow stayed neatly, and she gave a relieved sigh. The dumb thing never tied in the way she wanted, and, frankly, it was frustrating.

Kagome stepped back from the full-length mirror and gave herself one last once-over. She was satisfied with the way she looked. There was a knock at her door, and she spun on her toes when she heard it. The familiar aura brought a smile onto her face. She sashayed to the door and opened it just enough to peek her head out.

"Password!" she demanded playfully.

"Don't make me do this again," Chuuya sighed.

"How else do I know it's really you?" She remained insistent on hearing the password she had picked.

"You can read auras!" Chuuya paused and covered his eyes with one hand. "Who else would it be? We're the only ones who live here."

Kagome pouted and pulled her bedroom door open and let him enter. "Would it kill you to play along for me?" she asked. Kagome was soon over her childish annoyance at his refusal to humor her a matter of seconds later. She sat on the bed and leaned back on her hands, staring up at the ceiling before flopping back entirely.

Maybe it was just due to him keeping her out of the line of fire and the like, but she's had nothing to do for a good month and a half. She was practically dying of boredom while he was busy with paperwork and an assortment of other tasks that demanded his attention.

In the silence that had surrounded them, she could feel his stare focused on her. Curious, she sat up and pressed her hands onto her lap. "Something the matter?" she asked. Her worry carried into her voice, and she gave a relieved sigh when he shook his head.

"No, nothing."

"Then what is it?" she asked, quickly looking over herself to make sure her clothing wasn't a mess. "No, everything's done up right and looks nice…' she thought as she smoothed her shirt across her chest.

"The boss has a job for you to handle," he said. Those words caught her attention.

"Huh? What is it?"

Despite his attempts to keep her from having to do it, none had worked. Mori's plan for her remained solid, and not even he could change it. Though he was almost ready to pick a random face and put them up to it, consequences be damned.

He stopped himself from doing it, though. He chose to follow orders and believe Mori when he assured him Kagome would be fine.

"Come on," he said, motioning for her to follow him. She did as he said and fell into step with him. "I'll tell you as I take you to Mori."

"Okay," she said and nodded, trekking after him as the pair left the building that had been their house for a few months now.

C.R: Gonna go ahead and post this.

Kagome's 16, Chuuya's 22. At the moment their relationship is mostly just familiar. It'll become more romantic a bit later on. At the current point, she's been with the Port Mafia for a year.

That's it for now. Hopefully, you all enjoyed.

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Bye for now~