A\N: Hey guys, sorry about the wait on Orphan's Wrath, but I was re-watching Elfen Lied, or, more specifically episode 8(dear god, I hate this episode, or, at least, the flashback portion of it) and this popped into my head. So, for those of you who aren't reading my other stuff, check it out. Or, look forward to it. I'm so sorry about my update speed! I am trying to work out a mostly regular update schedule, can't make any promises, however, as I'm of college age, and life has decided to be straight up Chaos.
I own the anime. On Blu-ray. Not the creative license.
Disclaimer: See above.
Chapter 1: Puppy's Blood
"Stop! Please, stop! Don't hurt him, please!" Lucy tried vainly to escape the grasp of the boys who held her, begging Tomou to stop.
Said boy turned to face her, blood-splattered vase in hand. "And what'll you do if I don't? Huh!?" As he spoke, he grabbed her by the hair. "Huh, Horns!? What!?"
Lucy cried out in pain, whimpering in the same, unable to give any other response.
"That's what I thought!" Tomou said as he walked back to the dog, who was whimpering pitifully, almost drowning in a pool of his own blood. "Aw, it looks like the fun's almost over."
Turning to the table, he brought the vase down on it, breaking off the bottom and leaving a jagged point. He turned to the dog, a sneer plastered to his face. "Time to finish our game. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted." He drove the vase down at the d-
"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing, Tomou?"
The vase halted in mid-air, the wielder turning to face the source of the interruption. Said source was a boy, about 10 years old, with black-streaked iron-gray hair, yellow eyes, and scars scattered across his visible flesh. Which wasn't all that much, considering the short-sleeved hoodie, pants, and long-sleeved T-shirt.
"Jackson!"
"That is not my name. My name is Cain. And no, that's not what you're doing. If you won't tell me what you're doing, I'll tell you. You are beating a defenseless animal, to get back at an innocent girl who's never done anything to you that you didn't deserve. Even in other worlds, different times. And you aren't gonna like the result, that's a promise." As he spoke, the boy called 'Cain' walked into the room, towards Tomou. Cain stopped two feet short of Tomou, and even at that distance, the height difference was obvious, with Cain standing about four inches taller. (A/N: Remember, they, Lucy and Tomou, are about 7 or 8 years old. So, height dif be significant)
Tomou seemed to get the picture, and, true to Cain's word, he did not like it. Not at all. So he removed himself from it. The boys holding Lucy followed him out the door.
Cain then turned to the 8 year-old girl cowering in the corner. "And you. You should be ashamed of yourself, your parents certainly would be. Telling that psychopath about the dog, you knew what would happen!"
The girl flinched."I'm sorry."
"No, you're not," Cain growled. "But you will be. I may not like hitting girls, but after I've dealt with the dog, that isn't going to stop me dealing with you. So if you want to live another day, I suggest you make yourself scarce before the dog Is stable."
She seemed to get the picture too, as she was gone almost before Cain finished speaking.
When they had all left, Cain turned to Lucy. "You, girl, are you alright?"
Lucy sniffed. "Yeah, I'm ok. But Kiba's-"
Cain smiled as he turned around and kneeled next to the dog, Kiba. "He'll be ok too, Horns."
Lucy flinched at the nickname, but Cain didn't seem to notice. He was focused on bandaging the dog's wounds. "So, Kiba?"
Lucy looked up at the words, confused about the situation and not expecting to be asked questions. Much-less with civility. "I'm s-sorry?"
Cain sighed, trying to be patient. "The dog's name, Kiba."
"W-what about it?" If anything, Lucy looked more confused than before.
"His name, why'd you choose it."
"Oh, uh… I guess it just seemed like the most obvious choice. What about you? Why Cain?"
Cain's face fell, turning into a blank slate, devoid of all emotion. Lucy reacted instantly. "I'm sorry!" she cried, reeling away from the boy.
"No." Cain's voice was distant, flat and devoid of emotion, just like his face. That didn't last long, however, as he quickly recovered. "No, It's alright, not your fault. It's natural to ask, given the context."
Lucy got up from where she'd fallen in her attempt to escape more pain. "If you're sure..."
Cain nodded. "Yeah, it's fine. To put it simply, I wasn't abandoned like most of the others at the orphanage. I had parents."
Lucy's face lit up. "Really? What are they like!?"
" 'Had'. They're dead now."
"Oh." Lucy's smile disappeared.
"But that's beside the point. I took the name 'Cain' as a reflection of what happened to them and my older brother. I'll tell you the rest some other time. For now, we need to get this little guy some more extensive medical care," he said, picking up Kiba carefully.
"But how? If I take it to a teacher, they'll just tell me to put it outside or think that I'm the one who did it!"
"Yeah, you're right," said Cain. "That's why I'm taking him to the nurse. Or, rather, why I'm coming with. To back up what you tell them."
"Ok. Thank you." When she spoke, Lucy's voice clearly held doubt and mistrust, in both his words and Cain himself.
Cain frowned, before shrugging. 'It's not my place to judge how she acts, especially given how she's been treated.'
As they walked, Lucy went over what she knew about Cain. She knew that he was rough and kept to himself, as well as being cruel to those who showed that same cruelty. He wasn't afraid to let others know what his opinion on a given subject was, and always followed through on his threats and promises. Not that he himself was really above deception, he simply preferred the truth.
Arriving at their intended destination, Cain knocked on the office door. "Ms. Seto, we need help!"
The door opened, making Lucy jump and revealing a woman whose black hair was cut in a longer-than-normal-ish bob. (A/N: Masa~~ Well, not Masa, but same anime. Yeah, I went there. For those of you who don't understand, too bad. Look it up. I promise it's an anime quote.)
"Yes, what can I- Cain, why are you covered in blood!?"
"The blood isn't my fault this time, I swear, but I'll explain later. For now, Kiba here needs attention. I stopped the bleeding as best I could, but… "
The nurse straightened before nodding. "I understand. Come in, please."She stepped aside, allowing them to come into the room. "Put him on a bed, I can change the sheets later. "
Doing as he was told, Cain set Kiba down on the nearest bed. "Is there anything you can do for him, Ms. Seto?"
"Well, for starters I need to re-set his left hind-leg, his front right leg, and his bleeding injuries need to be disinfected, then re-bandaged." As she spoke she pulled on a pair of latex gloves and started working. As she did so, Lucy sat on a chair in the corner, Cain choosing to stand next to her.
Glancing down at her, Cain noticed that Lucy was trembling."Hey, he'll be fine. Ms. Seto's a genius when it comes to first aid. I've been the subject of that aid a few times," Cain said.
She made no response, but the trembling subsided. Cain smiled, progress had been made.
Sooo, yeah. I wrote this 2 years ago as of this Thursday(March 8th), and have slowly chipped away at it in that time frame. As of now I'm not super happy with it, but I figured I'd post it to see what kind of reception it got. If it gets enough love, then I'll try to continue it(probably involving a reformat, but holding the same plot). Once again, for those who have come from my other fics, i'm so sorry for the lack of updates. Umm, hmm...
Ah! Please do comment on any mistakes\fixes you might notice, and please. CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Much thanks for your time!
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