A/N: BASED off of Okage. Most (aka ALL) characters are terribly OOC. This is my version of how the story could have gone if things weren't so comical. So….this is the evil, depressing version of Okage that never happened and never will.
There are some things in the game that don't and have never happened in this story. You can probably pick up on what things I decided not to do and such….one example: Rosalyn doesn't have a parasol or a pink shadow.
Some people in my dark version have very little physical resemblance to what they look like in the game (their clothes are pretty much the same though). The most extreme differences are with Stan, James, and the ghosts. The ghosts aren't just big blobs. Hopefully you'll catch onto all the differences. If not…I don't suppose it'll hurt the story that much if you misinterpret what a character looks like. I'm not really a description writer, so it may be a little hard to figure out what my versions of the Okage characters look like (except Ari and his some of his family…they're pretty close to the game's version)…I'll try and include more description scenes than I usually do. And remember, they are very, very, very out of character.
The first few chapters are going to sound a LOT like the game…but it doesn't stay that way for long. And by now I'm sure you're tired of hearing me fret. Hope you enjoy. Review if it's not too much?
Ch. 1
"Ari! Dinner!"
My mother…she's so unreasonably perky. I twirled the thin knife between my fingers one last time before lifting my mattress and sliding it under. I peered out of my room – the hall was clear. Carefully, with my wristband in hand, I slid down to the bathroom and locked the door behind me. I turned the faucet on and washed the blood off my wrist. It had already scabbed over, so I didn't have to worry about it bleeding through my wristband. I slid the wristband back on and wrung my hand a few times to see if it still hurt. There was a little sting when it was bent back, but besides that nothing else….shame…the pain was comforting. It reminded me that I really did exist.
"Ari! Hun, where are you?"
I sighed. If only she really did care…
I looked up at the mirror. With the bathroom light still off, my face seemed somewhat demonic. Dull green eyes peered behind hanging long red bangs. Dark circles wound their way under the pair of eyes and my lips were in a permanent frown. Shaken by my own poor visage, I wrenched my gaze from my face and instead took in the rest of my figure. That wasn't much better to look at ….I was thin, wretchedly thin. My casual-looking clothes hung loosely over my practically nonexistent body.
"Ari! We're going to start dinner!"
I shook my head and finally left the bathroom. I headed down the hall and to the stairs. Peering over the railing I saw my mother standing with her red hair tied together and pulled over her shoulder. She had a still-wet, large wooden spoon in one hand and an apron hung loosely over her womanly frame.
"Ah, there you are." She smiled sweetly up at me and then gracefully turned around, back to the kitchen.
I traveled down the large wooden stairs and followed her into the kitchen. My sister, Annie, was already helping herself to her stew. She tied her long blonde hair back into a ponytail; not wanting a drop of her meal to get into her straightened hair. She sat up a little straighter, bending her back, revealing her curves.
My dad was fiddling with some bottle, completely oblivious to the dinner in front of him. His large, oversized, goggle-like glasses balanced precariously on his thin, pointed nose. When Annie sat straighter he instinctively shifted in his seat, his baggy, wrinkled, and white button-up shirt falling into a new pathetic position over his neglected body.
Mom set the spoon down on the counter and came up behind Dad. Bending down she kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, "Hun, dinner's ready. Could you put the bottle down for a second?"
He jerked up in his seat and scanned the room bewildered. "Ah? Ah, yes. Of course. Right. Dinner."
Mom smiled and left his back, finding her way to her own seat. She looked up at me and gave another sweet smile, "Dear, come sit. No need to lag by the door."
"Yeah," I murmured, taking my own seat.
Dad finally put the bottle down and turned to me, still ignoring the stew. "So, Ari," he began, trying to imitate a fatherly tone, "you should come downstairs when your mother calls."
Annie didn't miss the moment. "Yeah, Ari. Making Mom go after you like that. How irresponsible!" She smirked, her lips toying with their new lip gloss.
"Now now, it's no time to argue. Let's eat," Mom said, her ever-present smile overriding Annie's taunting.
"Where's Grandma and Grandpa?" I asked, still not touching my spoon.
"They ate early. They wanted to get some sleep," Mom said while blowing on the steaming stew she had collected on her spoon.
"Oh," I murmured. Slowly, I picked up my spoon and toyed with it. Everyone else was already immersed in their meal. I could probably leave right now and be unnoticed. Then again, there's always that chance that they might just notice…
"Oh my!" my mom dropped her spoon into her stew and blurted out, "I forgot to get the bread! This simply cannot do!"
"It's fine the way it is," Dad muttered, "No need to get bread."
"No no, we need bread. Annie, could you get it for me?"
"It's getting dark outside! Is it really safe for an unsuspecting young girl such as myself to go out wandering in the streets?"
"Oh, right. Of course. Ari, go get some bread from the bakery, will you?"
"But…"
"Oh don't be shy, go go! Can't have proper stew without bread now, can we? Besides, I put in a special order for this bread! Oh my, I can't believe I forgot it!"
"Um…alright." I set my still dry spoon down and slid the chair back. No one spared me a second glance as I left the kitchen.
Past the large foyer, out of the house, and through the foreboding gates marking our property, I made my way down the winding path to the town of Tenel.
My family was rich – the richest in all of Tenel. I don't know how and I don't know why, but for some reason a large heritage has been passed down since before Grandpa can recall. Then again, Grandpa's recollection doesn't span too far back…
However, all of that money meant we were isolated from normal town life. Sure, Annie managed to fit in quite nicely…but…well…I didn't have as much luck.
I finally reached the ancient and rather cheap gate guarding Tenel's borders. I pushed on the large gate and it swung open easily to my touch. Even though it was getting dark out, there were still tons of people swarming the streets, getting what they could before the sun called them back to their own homes. One person, however, stood out from the others. She stood unmoving, staring blankly at the darkening sky. Her fragile body was draped in a white dress which billowed in the light breeze. Funny…I didn't even realize there was a breeze.
All thoughts about the bread escaped me as I gingerly made my way over to her. I stood in front of her and waited for her to notice me. After nearly a minute I was beginning to feel silly and spoke up.
"Um…Julia?"
She continued to gaze vacantly at the sky, completely unaware to my presence.
"Uh…uh…Julia?"
Finally, she seemed to hear her name. Slowly, her eyes trailed from their spot to the sky and onto whatever it was that disturbed her stare. Our eyes finally locked, yet emotion was still nonexistent in her light blue eyes.
"…….Julia?" I repeated a third time.
The stirrings of recognition came over her. "Ah…oh, Ari. Hello. How are you?"
I broke out into a grin and muttered, "I'm good."
"Why are you here?"
My grin faltered – not the response I was hoping for. "I'm getting bread for dinner."
"Oh…that's nice…have you heard?"
"Heard what?" I asked, starting to get wary. I was so sick of rumors…
"There's going to be a circus tomorrow. How fun, right?"
"Oh!"
She giggled and a mischievous glint came into her otherwise expressionless eyes. "Well? Aren't you going to ask me to go with you?"
For a moment I lost the ability to speak and could only stare at her disbelievingly. Did…did she want me to actually ask her? It's now or never! She actually wants me to! Now or never!
"W-w-would y-you like to g-go to the c-c-circus with m-m-me?" My mouth failed to say the phrase smoothly.
She smirked playfully, the glint in her eyes intensifying. "Sorry, I was already asked. A shame, huh? You need to ask these things sooner."
In one powerful strike all my hopes were dashed and minced. She must have seen the crushed look in my face because she just giggled and turned around with her delicate legs. "I'll see you later, okay? Bye, Ari!"
Defeated and stripped of my pride, I sloughed the rest of the way to the bakery. I pushed the door open and stumbled into the bakery. An old, plump woman glanced up from her work and grinned as I entered.
"Ah! There he is! What a striping young lad you are! Well now, come come. I'm sure your mother's been waiting for this a good, long time right?" She winked at me, "No young boy actually goes straight to do an errand. Always a little pit-stop on the way."
She ducked under her counter and came back up with a loaf of wrapped bread in her hand. I slid money across the counter to her and she handed the bread over to me. Finally, she got a good look at me and her huge grin ebbed away a little.
"My my, that's no good. No good at all. Boys your age shouldn't be looking so down like that. Come on now, Ari. Buck up! Weather's simply lovely. Even around dusk, still got a beautiful breeze out. No use looking so overshadowed like that."
"Thank you, ma'am," I muttered, accepting the bread.
Her grin returned. "That's right. Now go have fun while you still can. No use in wasting your youth! Ha ha ha!" She turned her back to me and continued with what she was doing before I intruded.
My tail still between my legs, I left Tenel and worked my way up the winding path to my house. It was dark by the time I made it to my home's gate. I wrapped my fingers around the familiar metal and swung the gate open. I pulled it up behind me and picked up a chain from the ground. I stuck the wrapped bread under my arm and began to wind the large chain around the gate and its frame. When I was done I bent down again and snatched a hefty lock from the grass. Tugging the chain as tight as it would go, I stuck the lock into it and then snapped it shut. It's a necessary precaution. Unlike the people living within the walls of Tenel, my family and I had to provide our own security from the night's minions.
Sure that the gate was secure, I turned around and continued up to my front door, through the foyer, and back into the kitchen.
By the time I got there the kitchen was empty. All the dishes were cleaned and put away. The only thing left was my own bowl of stew, ice cold by now.
A knot found its way into my throat and stuck there. They had all left…they didn't even wait for the bread. Now the back of my eyes were starting to sting. Damn it, why?
I walked over to the cabinet and swung the door open, setting the bread down on a shelf. Shutting the cabinet door, I turned back to the table and began to clean up my bowl. My appetite completely gone, I let all my stew slowly slide down the drain. I scrubbed the bowl clean and then dried it, placing it away with the other bowls. I didn't even bother to clean my unused spoon.
I left the kitchen and headed back up the grandiose staircase and down the soft, carpeted hallway. At my door I turned the brass doorknob and shoved open the thick, wooden barrier. Silently, I shut it behind me and then fell on my bed. The back of my eyes were now burning, but I wouldn't let any tear form. There was no use in crying. It wouldn't make me any more meaningful to people. Then again, I suppose the knife wouldn't either…but still…
No…I wouldn't…not tonight. I flipped over onto my side and forced myself to sleep, not bothering to change out of my clothes.
Reluctantly, sleep made its way over to me and hesitantly snatched me into its arms. Mercifully, it let me sleep dreamlessly.