PLEASE READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE! VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THIS STORY!
A/N: First, thank you for taking the time to read my story, it means a lot to me:)
Second: The first chapter takes place in Japan, the rest in England (unless otherwise stated)
Third: Lucian is an OC, Light is Light.
Fourth: I switched up the family trees, so don't be alarmed! This is AU.
Fifth: No Death Note (as of now, might add it later)!
Disclaimer: If I owned Death Note, I wouldn't have to write fanfiction because all this would've already happened:P
Excuse any spelling errors!
Lefebvre Estate, Japan
Did I think today would be the day that I died? If only I had known, I probably would've stayed in bed longer.
But the truth was that it was an average Monday morning. The cool fall air had already started making leaves change colors and the flowers in the grand garden were swift to die. Only Sayu's roses remained alive, and that was due to her constant care. If it wasn't because of that, they would've wilted and fallen weeks ago.
The halls were quiet and peaceful this morning, only the sounds of Lucian's footsteps rang through the hallway. I followed closely behind him, taking my time with each step and analyzing my surroundings. Above me, a giant crystal chandelier sparkled although it wasn't even on, and exquisite vases decorated each corner. Although I would never admit it, this was my favorite area of the estate. The hallway had massive windows that displayed the grand garden and at sunset, as the sun melted out in the sky, it was absolute perfection.
Now I wasn't poetic or anything, it was just something I'd noticed since I was little.
Lucian stopped and turned to me, giving me an amused look. "You know, maybe if you got yourself a girlfriend, you wouldn't be so gloomy all the time."
I gave the sixteen year old the best deadpan look I could muster. "Relationships don't necessarily bring happiness."
"Maybe not, but if you're lucky, you might have a girlfriend who doesn't find you boring and actually want to sleep with you." He joked.
I ignored Lucian's remark; I had gotten used to his hormonal filled 'conversations' and could easily pretend he never spoke. If I wrote a book about what I did every day, it would fill up approximately half a page, if not less. I woke up before dawn, got dressed, trained, woke up Lucian, ate, entertained him the best I could for a solid twelve hours, and went to bed. Of course I had meals and bathroom breaks in between, but that basically described an average day for Lucian and me.
When Lucian realized I wasn't continuing our conversation, he rolled his eyes at me. "You know I was just teasing. You're no fun, would it kill you to act like seventeen year old instead of an old man?"
I took a deep breath and struggled not to sound irritated. "My job is to protect you Lucian, not be your friend."
By now, we were almost to the other side of the estate, closer to Monsieur Lefebvre's office. This area was usually off limits for the Lefebvre children, but today, Lucian, the oldest son and heir to the Lefebvre fortune, had been summoned by his father.
Lucian sighed and looked at me with sad eyes. "Do you even like me?"
In all honesty, I did like the sixteen year old. His jokes were annoying, but he was overall a nice person who showed respect to everyone, even his servants. Considering he'd been spoiled since the day he was born, I was surprised at how considerate he'd grown.
But I couldn't tell him that.
In my same, monotone voice I responded. "Would it make a difference?"
Lucian hesitated before answering. "Not really, but wouldn't you prefer to like the person you're going to have to follow around for the rest of your life?"
"Whether I like you or not, I'm still your Guardian and I will give up my life to save yours if necessary."
He didn't answer at first, but I heard him mutter. "You never even gave me a chance…"
I pretended not to hear him, because he was somewhat right. I never did give him a chance. I never thought that I would grow up to be Lucian's Guardian in the first place. I had been trained just to be an ordinary guard for the estate- nothing special. I wouldn't mind the life of guard, it was simple and more flexible. But then I was named an Elite.
An 'Elite' was what our organization named us. The Lefebvre family was a wealthy family, of course we never discussed how they gained their wealth. But I could assure you it was not through legal means. Now this is where the Guardians came in. We were an elite group of... 'Protectors'. Or assassins. Whatever we were needed for.
Whenever a wealthy family was targeted, the family could call us for help. We were under the radar so the government didn't know much about us, they believed we were a myth.
But we were all too real. Roughly fifty years ago, a dozen Guardians were assigned to the Lefebvre's family. I had been born into the Guardians and assigned to none other than the Lefebvre heir, Lucian Lefebvre. From a young age, I was trained in the art of self-defense and studied different languages. Intellectually, I mastered subjects at an alarming rate, finishing my schooling at the age of fifteen.
However, instead of continuing my combat training after I finished, the Guardians noticed the resemblance between Lucian and me from a young age. Although my hair was darker and longer than his, when I put on his clothes and styled my hair differently, it was frightening how similar we looked. And thus, led to my new assignment: Decoy.
If there was ever a threat on Lucian's life, I would simply throw on my disguise and people would mistake me as him. But his parents and younger sister, Sayu, could easily differentiate us by our clashing personalities and if we stood side by side. But to a stranger, I was like an identical twin.
Lucian and I were from two separate worlds; his world was full of lavish parties and wealth, mine was filled with treachery and deceit. There wasn't room for friends or mistakes, just business. Lucian still didn't understand that.
"Lucian! Light!" a chirpy voice called behind us, causing me to wince. Only one person in the world referred to me by that name. I turned around and saw Sayu, lightly jogging to us, her brown hair was out in large, brown curls, swinging with every motion.
Lucian smiled eagerly at his younger sister. "Good morning Sayu,"
Sayu returned the smile at us. "Are you going to see father? Could I come too?"
Sayu was a pretty young woman, only fourteen, but still charming. She was kind, polite, very intelligent, and of course, one of the heiress to the Lefebvre fortune. However, that was where things got tricky. Although we weren't told to speak of it, it was well known in the estate that Sayu was the product of an extramarital affair.
Not much was known about it, just that one day Monsieur Lefebvre came home with a ten year old girl. She spoke fluent Japanese and English, but no French, her father's preferred language. We were told she was an heiress and not to question it, so we didn't.
Rumors around the estate said her mother was a Japanese model who Monsieur Lefebvre had been infatuated with years ago on a business trip. Apparently, he knew nothing about Sayu until the woman passed away. Sayu never spoke about it and I certainly didn't press her. It wasn't my place to speak.
"Sure," Lucian answered continuing to his father's office. Lucian had accepted her as his sister from the beginning, eager to teach her French and the proper social etiquettes. The same couldn't be said about her step mother who was still having difficulties accepting her husband's infidelity.
Like I said, it wasn't my job to decipher their thoughts and feelings. I was just there to take a bullet when needed.
That was the strangest thing, I think. How casual death was in my mind. From an early age the Guardians had taught us that death was inevitable, so don't dwell too much on how it would occur. Because of that mindset, I was never afraid to die, but I hated the feel I constantly had. Like I was always waiting for it to happen.
Another result of being raised as a Guardian. Guardians had no family (that we knew of). After our early toddler years, we were transferred to an estate and lived there until old enough to defend them. I just so happened to be assigned to the Lefebvre's, a French family living in Japan.
"Damn it, he's still in a meeting." Lucian said, when we reached the doors to the office. The doors were glass, so you could see the inside.
I saw Monsieur Lefebvre sitting down in his office chair; next to him, two Guardians stood, scanning the room for any signs of danger. Across from him sat a man with a briefcase and his own guards. They obviously hadn't reached an agreement, so it seemed like Lucian and Sayu would have to wait for a bit.
"Light, do you think this weekend you can ask father if I could go to the city? My French tutor told me there's a boutique and I've been on my best behavior. Plus, he listens to you." Sayu asked, giving me her widest smile.
I sighed heavily. "You know he'll say no, Sayu."
It didn't matter how good Sayu was, her father never let her past the estate. Being a secret heiress, he wanted her protected and hidden at all times. Sayu hadn't left the estate since her arrival four years ago and with only the guards, servants, and tutors as company, she had grown relentless. But what did anyone expect from locking a fourteen year old girl in a house for years?
As we waited, I scanned the area as Sayu tried her best to convince me to ask her father. The estate was by far the safest place in the world, hidden in the Middle of Nowhere, Japan, the Lefebvre's had no need for Guardians. The job itself had become tedious.
Following Lucian around, listening to his never ending chatter wasn't exactly my cup of tea. I had put up with it for years, but even I was getting exhausted.
I was seventeen years old and what I really wanted was some excitement in my life... Like going to university and furthering my education. Monsieur Lefebvre 's always said I was brighter than his son and could definitely make something of myself. But that wasn't my job, my job was to protect Lucian.
But what happened when Lucian got married? Did I move in with him and sleep in the same bed as him and his wife? No. I wanted more than just play babysitter with him.
Suddenly, Lucian gasped and Sayu let out a strangled cry. "Oh my God." she choked out in Japanese, her hands clamped to her mouth.
I was so caught up in my thoughts, I hadn't been paying any attention to what was happening. I followed Lucian's shocked gaze through the glass door and gasped in shock.
Monsieur Lefebvre's throat was gushing with blood.
As a seventeen year old boy, I would panic, maybe even freeze. But as a Guardian, I quickly switched into 'protector' mode and went through the five steps I had been taught. First, analyze the situation. I looked through the door and noticed his two Guardians were down on the ground, unmoving. Dead, I concluded. Always go with the worst case possible.
Next, I assessed the enemy. The man with the briefcase was now standing and his two guards had blood on their suits. One carried a knife, the other a gun. They were discussing something, and then, one pointed out at the door where we were standing.
That was step number three. Avoiding the danger.
I was positive they had spotted us, why else would they point in our direction? And from the scene I had seen inside, it was obvious they had murdered Monsieur Lefebvre. I was surprised at how easily I was taking this, no panicking or screaming for help. But then again, I was trained for this.
Lucian and Sayu on the other hand were not. Lucian, was pale and shaking uncontrollably while Sayu was sobbing and breathing heavily, as if she couldn't get enough oxygen and about to faint. I couldn't have any of this, so it came to my fourth step: Fight or flight.
In any other situation, I would've fought. My training had not left any room for the enemy to beat me. But these people had just murdered two Shadow's and Monsieur Lefebvre's. I would just be child's play to them. So I went with flight.
I grabbed Lucian and Sayu's arms and sunk to the floor." Be quiet and don't panic." I hissed. "They've spotted us and if we don't leave now, they will kill us. We have to get to the kitchen, there's a servants exit there. Now I'll need you two to trust me and not panic, alright?"
I looked at both of them in the eyes and they both nodded, their eyes frightened. With a deep breath, I started leading the way back down the hallway. I was crouched lowly, and half running half walking. My footsteps were silent, a technique I had long learned. Sayu, however, had heels on that made the loudest sounds. I gave her a brief look that said 'Get rid of those damn heels'. She quickly discarded them.
As we made our way, crouching through my favorite hallway, I no longer admired its beauty. Everything about this situation seemed unreal, how could Monsieur Lefebvre be dead? He had such strong connections and was so powerful... I shook my head feverishly, I had to focus and get the heirs out. With Monsieur Lefebvre dead, that left his children as the successors to the empire he'd formed. But where was his wife? Did she know what was happening?
We finally reached the stairs that led down to the kitchen and I let Lucian and Sayu go first. I leaned back against the wall and kept look out until they were halfway down. Then I quickly followed them until we reached the lower level. It was deserted, thankfully, with the table being set for breakfast. If I saw one of the servants, I'd alert them and they'd contact my superiors.
"Quickly, get inside." I said opening the kitchen door. "We're almost out, you two are doing-" I stopped short when I saw the inside of the kitchen.
Inside the once happy and animated kitchen was at least half a dozen slaughtered bodies. The cook, the servants, the maids, all lay in array with either fatal stab wounds or gunshots. Their blood pooled around their bodies and edged towards the door. Sayu screamed so loudly, I had to clamp her mouth shut. The sight was truly sickening, considering these were people who had practically raised me.
I tried not to look, but I met the dead eyes of the cook, Madame Jacqueline. Her curly red hair fell in limp masses over her kind face. She had been shot three times in the chest. Madame Jacqueline had been the closest thing to a mother I ever had and seeing her like this, submerged in her own blood almost made me freeze in shock.
I forced myself to stop looking at faces because I knew I'd recognize each one and memories of what they did for me would come back and halt my mission. I had to protect the heirs. It was my duty, my job, my reason for exist-
"There they are!" someone said in a foreign language. Since I wasn't focused, it took me a moment to pick out which language they had spoken in. My ears had easily translated it, so it had to be a language I heard often... English! I'd have to remember small details like that when my superiors came.
I quickly shut the kitchen door when I realized they were coming straight at us with a knife and gun cocked. A wooden door would hardly stand for a gun, but it would buy us some time... The servant exit was a small rectangular door that had a lock. It led to a small tunnel and after you crawled out, it would lead you to the balcony. From there, we could take the stairs and either hide in the garden or escape, depending on how heavily guarded things were outside.
Somebody kicked the door from the other side and shook the doorknob agitatedly. I held on tightly though, as Lucian and Sayu stood, still in shock from the massacre in front of them. The struggle to hold the door was hard, these men were positive they could open it without the use of gun power, but if I let go, they'd kill me before I could get through the servant door...
Then bitter reality sunk in: I wouldn't be going through.
The fifth and final step taught in my training was self-sacrifice. If it ever came to the situation where it was between the wards' life and yours, you would never hesitate to give up your own. I had been taught this since before I could read, this was embedded in my head, death was inevitable.
So why was I stalling?
The answer was obvious. I was only seventeen and had hardly ever left the estate. There were so many things I'd yet to experience, I wasn't ready to die.
But that didn't matter, it was an oath I had taken years ago. This was my duty, I would fulfill it. "Lucian..." I said, my voice surprisingly strong. "Lucian, listen to me." Lucian wasn't listening, he was going into shock. "Lucian! Snap out of it!"
Finally, he managed to look at me with fearful eyes. "They're dead..." he said in a strange voice that I had never heard him use.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. "I know, and right now, were the only ones who know what happened. You two are the heirs, you need to survive to continue your family's line and get justice for your parents-"
"What about Madame Lefebvre?" Sayu cried, referring to her step mother who mostly ignored her.
The men on the other side shook the door, almost yanking my arm out of the socket. "Sayu they had already planned this, I wouldn't be surprised if they already-" Lucian turned pale, realizing that his mother was probably dead and Sayu gasped. Shoot. Wrong choice of words. "Don't worry, she probably escaped. But right now, I can't hold on anymore." I heard loud banging and cursing on the other side.
Lucian and Sayu stopped shaking and their eyes widened in fear. I took a deep breath and gripped the handle firmly. "Lucian we all can't leave, one of us has to hold the door while the others escape..."
"No..." Lucian whispered.
"You and Sayu need to go through the door and run and hide in the garden. Help is going to arrive soon." I hope. "Stay there and... and I'll join you two as soon as I can." Alright I was lying, but what could you say when death was literally banging at the door? I found it strange that I could still crack jokes at a time like this. Must be some twisted mental reaction to dying.
Lucian shook her head. "No, Light! You won't, they'll kill you. Please come-"
"I can't, okay!?" I shouted. This made Lucian and Sayu stiffen and I took a deep breath to calm myself. "I want justice, Lucian. You being alive with ensure that I and your family will get justice. Don't worry about me," I gave them a rare, small smile. "I'll be fine. You two... I have faith in you."
As annoying as Lucian may be sometimes, I couldn't deny the fact that over the course of sixteen years, I'd grown somewhat attached to him. I may of found him irritating, but he was like air. Always around, but you never would notice until you had nothing to breathe.
And of course, I would miss Sayu. I would never tell anyone this, but I had grown fond of the girl and felt sorry she wasn't accepted here. Maybe she would find her place as she grew older. I wouldn't know.
Lucian just stared at me in awe for a second and slowly approached me as the struggling on the other side became stronger. Their grunts told me they were getting impatient, and I knew any second now, they'd shoot the door down. I thought Lucian was coming closer to hug me or something, but to my complete and utter surprise, Lucian did something I'd never imagine him to do in a million years.
He pushed me out of the way and grabbed the door handle.
I wasn't expecting the push and landed on the ground with a loud thud. Lucian pushed his body against the door with a determined expression on his face.
"Lucian, what the hell!?" I shouted, scrambling up. Was he mad? That was the riskiest move anyone could do, what if while we transitioned, the men had pushed through!?
But Lucian looked down at me with pride in his eyes. "With me, Sayu has little chance to survive, but with you, Light, I know she'll survive. We only need one heir, not both of us. I know if you're with Sayu, you'll protect her. I know she'll be fine."
I was shocked. Did Lucian really just give up his life for mine? Never had I been more shocked. "Lucian don't be ridiculous, you two can survive."
Sayu shook her head. "All three of us can! Let's make a run for it or put a chair or-"
"No," Lucian said. "I can hold them off, you two need to run. Light, I know no matter what, you'd get justice for my family... and me. I'm not asking you to go, I'm telling you and as my Guardian, you cannot refuse my order!"
I frowned at him. "Lucian we're wasting time..." there was uncertainty in my voice now, which wasn't a good thing.
Lucian sighed, "Then stop wasting time and go." he gave me one last pleading look, "Please."
The look in his eyes told me that this was final, that he'd spend all day arguing with me if he had to. That if this was the end, this was his dying wish. I was ready to deliberate with him when a gun shot fired near the hinge of the door. Lucian didn't scream, but jumped a little, before pushing his body weight on the door even more. "You two have to leave now, I'll hold them off as long as I can!"
I nodded and quickly jumped over the dead bodies to the other side of the kitchen. I bent down to the disguised door that blended in with the wallpaper and took out a key in my pocket. This key was given to all workers in the house and opened this secret door. I also took out my knife from my boots. It was glossy, coated with a layer of poison that wouldn't kill the person who was stabbed, but paralyze them for half an hour.
I opened the door and had to drag Sayu in, who was pleading with her brother to come with us. When I'd finally coaxed her into the tunnel, she poked his head out one last time in a desperation. "Lucian, please, don'tleaveme."
Lucian gave his sister a sad smile and said to me, "Protect her, Light. I transfer you to her. You are now her guardian, promise me you'll keep her safe."
I nodded to him, "I promise. Thank you, Lucian-"
Bam! A gunshot went through Lucian's shoulder, making all of us scream. That told me it was time to go. Sayu kept calling for her brother, and just then, another gunshot flew through Lucian's side, grazing his ribs. This sent Lucian down to his knees, but his grip on the door was still there. Another shot went through, this time, embedding itself deep and his back. Sayu let out a small cry and I shut the door.
The door had small cracks which enabled us to see what was happening, and although I knew I should be escaping, I wanted to see their faces. I had to see who these murderers were. The men kicked the door open, and Lucian fell in a pitiful pile on the floor. He wasn't dead yet and groaned in pain. One of the men, grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him.
"Boy, tell me where's the other one." he said in broken French. The fact that he spoke to him in French told me he obviously had to know a bit about the family and this was no random attack. Why else would he not speak to him in Japanese when we lived in Japan?
The intruders wouldn't turn around so I couldn't see their faces. Sayu gripped my arm, shaking violently. I would've comforted her if I wasn't so determined to see the faces. The two men were dressed in black, with jackets that probably concealed more weapons.
Blood dribbled out of Lucian's lip as he answered. "Over... my... dead body." he gasped.
The man chuckled. "Very well, but remember you asked for it." he answered in English. He must not know Lucian was fluent in not only French and Japanese, but also English. The man lifted his knife and in one swift motion, slit Lucian's throat.
Sayu buried her face in my arm and shook wildly, her cries muffled in my sleeve. I was in complete shock as blood oozed from his pale neck down to his navy sweater. Although he was dead, he didn't look peaceful, in fact, he was staring right at me. His gaze said it all: Protect Sayu.
The man then conveniently turned around in our direction and must've noticed the door. But that's when I saw it, his face. I would never forget it, his square jaw, coal black eyes, and thick eyebrows. All features many men possessed, but something about him was sickening.
Maybe it was the fact that he had just murdered a sixteen year old.
But I didn't waste any more time watching and grabbed a traumatized Sayu, and I started crawling through the tunnel. It was hard, to say the least; Sayu was no longer any help and was shaking insanely. I wanted to tell her to snap out of it, that she was fourteen years old and had to stay alive. If she didn't, her brother had just killed himself for nothing.
But at the same time, I was sympathetic for her feelings and wanted to sit down and hope to wake up from this nightmare. But I couldn't. I had promised Lucian I'd keep her safe and that was exactly what I would do. So I kept dragging her through the dusty and cobwebbed infected tunnel, and didn't even panic when I heard the door open and someone shout "It's an escape route!" in English.
We kept crawling until I felt the ground beneath my feet turn more rugged. We were close to the exit door. I could still hear soft shouts from behind us, but I knew if I turned around, I'd probably freeze up in fear. But I couldn't be afraid, not today.
When I ran into a cool wall, I realized this was the end. My hands scrambled around a metal door until I felt the handle. After I unlatched it, I pushed the door open and the darkness of the tunnel was illuminated by the bright sunlight of the outside world.
A gust of cool autumn air blew in my face, spiking up my senses. "Almost there, Sayu." I encouraged. She'd been awfully silent recently, but I couldn't risk worrying about her when our lives were at stake.
I crawled out of the tunnel and turned around to help Sayu out. But she was already hauling herself through the tunnel, with an expressionless face. When we were both out, I scanned around our surroundings, with my knife in my hand. The coast was clear and beckoned for Sayu to follow as we quickly jogged across the balcony. During this time, I made sure to listen for any abrupt sounds that could mean danger.
Everything felt surreal, not like a dozen people had just been killed in the house. This was my home and my mind refused to believe it had just been invaded. Those men were just part of another business that Monsieur Lefebvre worked with, why would they want him and his family dead? What did they want?
"There you are!" Someone hissed, intercepting my pathway. It was a rather short man, with a beard and leather gloves. "Give me the girl and I'll allow you to live." He said the last part in Japanese, which was even stranger.
The man obviously knew Sayu grew up with Japanese being her primary language, why else would he speak in Japanese instead of French like they did Lucian? Then another thought hit me:
How did they even know about Sayu?
We had just found out about her four years ago and she never left the estate. This situation was getting stranger by the moment.
I had been trained to react to every threat and not negotiate with the enemy. So I glared darkly at him, "You'll have to get through me first." I said darkly. And sure enough, the short man ran up, ready to kick me, but I got my knife ready and aimed. The moment his foot was about to hit my face, I slashed my knife around to his ankle, cause his leg to collapse.
He fell to the ground and cursed in pain. "Son of a bitch." He said in English. My eyes flared and I lunged at him, stabbing his shoulder in the process. When I pulled the knife out and he screamed in pain and tried to punch me, but of course, he couldn't. His arm was paralyzed.
"Sayu! Go!" I shouted, pushing down on the hit man. Maybe I could get a few answers from him... When I didn't hear footsteps, I turned around. Sayu was still standing there. "Didn't you hear me? Go to the garden!"
But Sayu didn't move, in fact, she had a strange vacant expression as I spoke. Her eyes looked at me puzzled, like she just realized I had spoken. "Sayu, why aren't moving? Hide!" But she still didn't move. She just kept staring at me with that puzzled expression.
I didn't have time for this; I turned to the man. "Who sent you? Why did you kill Monsieur Lefebvre? Speak!" I demanded.
The man smirked and chuckled at me. "Say hello to your precious family, brat." He hissed in English. I frowned in confusion, and for the first time noticed something in his left hand, the non-paralyzed one.
It was a small device with a red button, and his thumb was pressing down on it.
My eyes widened in horror and I quickly scrambled up and grabbed Sayu's hand. "Sayu, it's a bomb! We have to get out of here!" I exclaimed, dragging her away from the man. I didn't know where the explosives were, but I'm sure it had to be near from what the hit man had said.
Sayu was still no help and was slowing us down. At this rate, we'd never reach the staircase to the garden. We were halfway there and I leaned over the white balcony and peered below, we were directly above Sayu's rose garden. This was the second floor, if we jumped, we most likely would survive and only have temporary injuries. But the height did intimidate me.
"Sayu, we're going to have to jump, alright?" I said, mentally preparing myself for the fall. Sayu once again was playing mute and just stared at me in confusion. I was going to repeat my instructions when I heard the first explosion. It was an earsplitting boom! followed by the sound of walls crumbling.
I covered my ears in pain and so did Sayu. I think she finally understood the danger. Despite my painful ears, I forced myself to concentrate. The sound wasn't as loud, so it had to come from the far east side of the estate. If I was correct, that meant they would target the center of the house next-
Boom! There went the center bomb. I realized then that we probably had less the ten seconds before the last one went off. Sayu was still playing the dazed card so I took it upon myself to make the next decision: Jump.
I grabbed Sayu's thin arms and hugged her tightly, as I dangled one foot over the thankfully low balcony. "Hang on!" I ordered, whispering one last pray before jumping.
The moment my body left the balcony, another explosion behind us erupted. It was so loud and deafening, I couldn't think or process the fact I was falling towards the hard ground. Sayu was screaming extremely loud and clung to me in fear. For a second, all sensation around me disappeared as I fell, air whipping around me in quick flashes. It wasn't until Sayu's nails dug deep enough in my skin did I come back to my senses.
From the angle we were plummeting at, Sayu would get the worst of it. I had to somehow manage for us to land on our sides, that way, our heads and necks would be slightly more protected. I forcefully twisted our body's positioning at the last moment, and thankfully, we landed on our side- painfully, though, if I may add.
The rose bush thorns stuck at my arm and face, cutting my skin upon impact. Sayu's head snapped back forcefully and she stopped screaming, stopped moving. This brought fear to my stomach immediately. I had landed the same exact way with only excruciating pain, surely Sayu wouldn't... die from the fall. It wasn't that high, right?
But we weren't out of harm's way yet. I could hear the balcony cracking and pieces were already toppling over. Using the last bit of strength I had, I mustered all my energy into rolling us out of the rose bush and into the dirt ground, behind trees and shrubs. We landed with a loud thud, and I was now in too much pain to move anymore. But at least we were hidden for the time being...
"Sayu...?" I murmured to her. Sayu's eyes were closed and her lips were slightly parted. She looked peaceful, almost asleep. I wanted to feel her pulse, but my arms were numb. I sighed and closed my eyes, all of a sudden feeling extremely exhausted. Maybe I was dying too...
The memory of all the people in the house made me want to cry, despite my teachings. I knew crying was for the weak, but with Sayu lying possibly dead in my arms and the estate left in rubble, I didn't know what to do. I tried so hard to protect her, but I had failed. Lucian had killed himself for nothing.
What kind of Guardian was I?
I just want this all to be a nightmare and when I opened my eyes, it would all go away. But when I opened my eyes, I only saw smoke and destruction. My eyelids felt heavy again and as they began to close I only saw one thing...
Sayu's last rose being whisked away in the air.