I sat alone, as always, in front of my tree at the back of the yard. The tree was the only friend I really had. It never talked to me, for obvious reasons, but it was a good listener…which, I guess, was all I needed in those simple days. I sat with the shade hiding me in the shadows. I preferred the darkness of it…the solitude. I could do anything without being bothered by the other children my age, who were playing games in the bright midday sun. I never played with them, for they thought I was…different…strange…not like I cared, not that I wanted to play with them anyways…
I looked over, above the tall wrought-iron fence and the sickly green ivy vines that covered it like a thick blanket, and marveled at the rooftop of the manor next door to the orphanage. I mostly only saw the rooftop, due to the fence and trees all around. Though, once in a while I could catch a glimpse of the manicured lawn from my bedroom window. The finely crafted rooftop trim was enough to pique my interest as to what the rest of the manor might look like. Though it was not like I was going to be viewing it from the inside…even though I sometimes imagined what it might be like to live in such a place. With the ornate decorations, and ivy slowly climbing over the building, surrounding the windows with thick vines that urged to find its way inside.
I could hear many voices from over there, along with the sharp sound of a ball hitting a racket, most likely tennis…which I observed that it occurred nearly daily. I used to play…I wonder why I stopped As I wandered through my endless thoughts, I was caught off guard by a rouge tennis ball, which found its way through the ivy, in between the iron bars, and rolled its way over to me, stopping after tapping my foot. I picked it up, and stared at it curiously…although I have yet to recall what interested me so much about a worn out tennis ball…
The ivy leaves rustled as someone dug through them, obviously looking for something. From a space in the thick greenery, I saw a pair of deep, blue, almost daemonic eyes looking through. I stared at them, as they stared at me. The deepness startled me, it was almost like some kind of void. They say the eyes are a path to the heart…if so, these eyes must belong to someone utterly heartless. The vines were gently pulled back with tiny, pale fingers, to reveal the face a small girl. Just a girl? She didn't seem quite right. She stared at me with a shy smile, and turned her gaze to the ball I was tossing around in my hands.
"This ball is yours, right?" I asked her, as she looked back to me. She nodded to me slightly as to answer my question with a 'yes'. I slowly stood up, walked over to her, and cautiously extended my arm to present the ball to her. She slid her hand gently between the bothersome rust, and received the ball in her small hands.
As she took her hand and the ball back behind the wall of ivy, she said in a quiet voice, "thank you." She smiled at me, and then looked away quickly. I nodded in response, and she turned away and left. I watched her through the hole as she skipped back merrily back to a
I simply nodded in return, and she turned away and left. I leaned forward and looked through the hole which she had looked through. I could have achieved my desire of looking more at the manor on the other side of the fence…but I found myself more inclined to watch the girl skip merrily in her short, white dress…which I found oddly alluring…back towards what appeared to be a tennis court, where she continued playing with a guy she addressed as Annie. Then…I went back to my tree…as if nothing had happened…
That was my first encounter with the girl I learned to be named: Ryu-saki Sora…