Prologue.
Hiroto was thirteen when she realized that her seat-mate often disappeared during breaks without a trace before promptly returning to class afterwards. It wasn't that the act was suspicious. She only remembered it because she was curious about what a middle school student would be so busy with; even more so that they were only first years.
But she didn't mind it. It wasn't any of her business so she moved on.
Two months later, she discovered him carrying something that looked like a tablet of sorts. She wasn't surprised. Technology had always been popular amongst people her age. Hiroto was actually pretty interested in it as well. She was never the athletic type.
A week later when she was approaching the restrooms, she saw him walk into the male bathroom, tablet in hands with a dull expression on his face. At that moment she raised a brow. What would he be doing with that tablet in the bathroom? Entertainment, perhaps. Though, she could still remember that she assumed he was watching things he shouldn't be. After all, she didn't know him enough to make a proper assumption.
Naturally, she didn't say anything and simply made her way towards the female restroom, finished her business before walking out. As she left, Hiroto had turned to glance over her shoulder, moving some black strands out of the way to look at the door of the male restroom. She remembered wondering if he had left.
Then she returned to her classroom and sat down on her chair, sliding a book out from the compartment underneath her table and cracking it open back to where the bookmark laid. Hiroto kept her eyes on the page until the door slid open and her seat-mate silently walked in with an expression of distaste on his face.
She then returned to her novel.
Hiroto had always been rather withdrawn compared to her brother. Their relatives often talked about how they were polar opposites. Hiroto agreed completely. Her elder brother was a chatter box and a never-ending ball of sunshine, whilst she was quiet and gloomy. He was two years her senior and attended a faraway all-boys middle school as a third year. He lived in the dormitories and only came home during breaks, presenting new stories to her excited parents about his adventures at his school.
He had always been a good guy that listened properly. That was why no one saw it coming when one visit he told their parents he was going to drop out after graduating middle school. Hiroto was surprised especially since it was him that was going to grow to hold the spot as the head of the family. She could still remember how her father's face turned red in anger at what he had said.
It was autumn back then. She could remember seeing the leaves fall from the trees in the garden from the traditional drawing room. Her mother was dumbstruck at the time, gaping at her firstborn as if he grew a tail. Her father's fists were clenched as they rested on his knees, gripping the material of his kimono in an attempt to calm down.
Her brother's face was a mix of fear and determination. At the time, she could only look at him blankly, indifference spreading across her face after his announcement. It was certainly sudden, and it was certainly unwanted.
"What brought this up all of a sudden?" Her father tried very hard not to yell at the boy.
"I can't achieve my future goals at school."
After that their father could not help it. He stood up and yelled furiously at him as her mother tried to calm him down. Her actions were proved useless when he slapped his own son across the face. She was shocked when it happened. It was the first time she had witnessed her own father raise a hand against them. But what really surprised her the most was that her brother took it with no complaints, only wincing at the stinging pain on his cheek.
Not sparing even the smallest glance, her father left the room. Their mother was torn at that moment. The woman wasn't sure whether or not to help her son or go cool down he husband. With a strained look towards her son, she left the drawing room to follow their father with a quickened pace, leaving Hiroto alone with her brother.
And for the first time that day she spoke to him, "Y'know, he won't accept an apology."
"Yeah, I know, and he won't be getting one."
He was serious. He didn't say or even mutter a single word close to an apology to their father. It was a blow to both sides from what she observed that day. Her family lost their precious male heir whilst her brother lost his own family.
It was only a three days later that her brother was found leaving the estate, luggage in tow before disappearing into the cold jungle people called the city.
Hiroto was always a face-person when it came to people. That was why it was difficult to even remember the names of students in her own class. However, she did remember the name of a particular boy in the class next door to hers. There had been gossip spreading around about how he took the blame for his friends when they got into trouble. Hiroto had mentally applauded at the news since she did not know the male personally.
He was betrayed though. His 'friends' had never looked at him as one of them and simply used him. Was he damaged because of it? Would he also fall into corruption just like the characters in manga? She actually found herself hoping not. It was refreshing to hear about a kind spirit in an age of arrogance and selfishness.
Her female classmates had told her he seemed kind of scary and had red messy hair. She had nodded at them, storing the piece of information in the back of her mind for future reference in case she bumped into the just teen.
Around four days after her conversation with the girls, she accidentally rammed into someone as she turned a corner in the school hallways. When Hiroto glanced up, she found herself standing in front of her a male a bit taller then her with fiery red hair that matched the color of his cheeks.
"A-Ah! S-S-Sorry…" He apologized quickly before making his way around her and sprinting off. Without a doubt, that was the boy that her class was talking about. The look of naïve and simplemindedness was extremely visible on his face. Despite only making eye contact with his hazel eyes for a few seconds, she had realized that his sense of innocence was gone. Hiroto was sure it was because he was degraded and betrayed by those other guys. It was unfortunate.
She turned towards the direction he ran off to again before spinning on her heel and continuing to walk. Hiroto had wished him good luck on that day. The black haired girl could remember thinking how it would be nice if Yata Misaki could regain that pure sense of justice.
And he did.
Two months later, she talked to her seat-mate for the first time.
"I'm sorry, by any chance did you write down the notes for the previous period?" She had fallen asleep. It was a relaxing kind of warm that afternoon and she fell asleep the moment class began.
Her seat-mate's eyes lazily looked over to hers, observing her for a moment before pulling out a notebook and handing it to her. She gladly accepted it and bowed her head in appreciation. Her blue eyes scanned the front of the book and found his name written neatly in the corner. After taking in his name, Hiroto opened the book and proceeded to copy out his notes.
"You've got really neat handwriting." She noted out loud as she read through them.
"It's not that big of a deal." He replied, sinking into his chair deeper.
"Ah, you must be the type to do well at school, right?" Hiroto asked, keeping her eyes on the job. There was a small pause before her seat-mate talked again. "Does it really matter?"
Hiroto continued, "I only assumed since it looked like you were studying even during breaks."
At the time, she was sure that he was shocked that she had noticed because of the longer pause he took. She was guessing that he tried to leave the room as if he was never there each time.
"I wasn't studying." He bluntly admitted. Ah, so she was wrong.
"I see," Hiroto went on, "then how about you let me hang out with you then? Oh, of course not in the guy's bathroom."
His eyes widened at that comment too before returning to his usual blank look. "Why would I want to hang out with you?"
"Fushimi-kun, it isn't good to be anti-social."
After another two days of hard work on Hiroto's part, the bespectacled boy reluctantly agreed and began eating lunch with her near a secluded place at the back of school.
It was quiet for a while before they met Yata.
She was fourteen years old when her father brought her to the drawing room. In a familiar setting, she kneeled a few meters away from her two parents. Her mother sat behind her father, looking at her worriedly whilst the expression on her husband's face was unreadable. The man was wearing the same kimono he wore that time.
"Hiroto, it's been decided that you will inherit the position as head of the family." Monotone. It was obvious that he did not want a girl to take control of the family. He simply had no choice.
"The branch families favor you well. Do not fail them." Her father grunted as he stood up, a stern look on his face as he slowly walked out of the room. Hiroto bowed as he left. It was 'proper' manners after all. It was pitiful the way her father acted. Since he had no other choice he had dropped her the title as heiress to their clan simply because the true one disappeared.
"Don't mind him, Hiroto." Her mother's voice brought her up from her position. "The stress from the others are too much nowadays."
It was at that moment Hiroto decided that her brother was selfish. For the first time, she could feel the anger in her body boil in silent rage. She did not want the title her father dropped into her lap. She wanted to live a simple life, one away from the clan or anyone she did not know.
She hoped he dropped dead.
They were fifteen.
Yata and Fushimi dropped out of middle school.
She continued and graduated.
Yata visited her at the graduation and congratulated her. Fushimi was also there with that usual grumpy frown on his face.
Her eyes narrowed at the red tattoo peeking out of Yata's shirt.
She didn't say anything.
From time to time they would hang out together when she entered her first year in high school. Fushimi had thrown a packet of chips at her face after midterm results were out and she had told him she gained the number one ranking. Yata passed her a can of soda and she gladly accepted it.
She had also joined the fencing team at school, which Fushimi snorted at. Hiroto had found herself getting roped in after she was randomly pulled aside by an upperclassman to join the club. Before she even knew it her name was down on the registration paper. It was too annoying to request to resign from the club anyway so she decided to just go with it.
Her mind was also focused on technology around then. The black haired girl often taught herself online how to program and manipulate her own devices. Fushimi also gave her some advice despite himself. Yata who had no real idea of the mechanics simply noted aloud about how her hair grew longer. She always wore it in a ponytail back then.
And then as the months went by, the knowledge of how to hack fully embedded into her brain and the boredom of school only grew. Fencing became a skill she was extremely good at and she participated in competitions. Her upperclassmen were thrilled at her results and urged her to compete in more.
So, she did.
Hiroto won first place in the winter contest and was surprisingly congratulated by a man she did not know. It was as if he was different from the rest of the crowd yet Hiroto did not know why. There was something about his very presence that was unique to the world and she wanted to know.
"Congratulations, Ichinose-kun. Your form was spectacular during the match." His violet eyes shone brightly behind his glasses with a polite smile dancing on his lips. He was wearing a blue uniform from what she could remember. "I do hope you're thinking of pursing fencing, you carry a talent for it." He finished before calmly bowing to her and heading towards the exit.
Her blue eyes drifted to the trophy in her arms and then his retreating back. She never thought of really using the art of fencing later in life; it was simply something she did just for the sake of it, but a stranger had easily made her question her own thinking. Though, it wasn't a bad thing for him to do so. It made her think about her unknowable future laying ahead in two or so years time.
Hiroto watched silently as he left the area, two men following behind him wearing the same but slightly altered uniform as him. She did not understand why she felt drawn to him, the atmosphere from the very moment he appeared captured her interest straight away. He was a unique man and certainly not normal. He was more then what a human being was. Even she understood that clearly.
Around spring the next year, she met the same man from the competition again, but only in a different setting. Hiroto had been called to the headmaster's office during her lunch break to meet up with the dark blue haired male. Her eyes could not help but widen when she found him standing next to the headmaster who looked like a nervous pig. Their heads turned towards her as she made her presence known by stepping further into the room. She bowed at them and they nodded in appreciation.
"Ichinose-san, you must be wondering as to why you were called here." The headmaster said to her before glancing over to the man beside him, "you have made this institution extremely proud with your efforts in your club."
"Thank you very much, sir." It sounded as if the old man was sending her off to die.
"I'd like to introduce you to Munakata Reisi, the captain of Scepter 4." It was then when she had formally met the man who had smoothly complemented her fencing style the year before. Munakata's pleasant smile remained on his face as he bowed his head at her as she did the same. "I'm Ichinose Hiroto. It's a pleasure to meet you." She introduced herself properly with a half-genuine smile despite already knowing he knew her name. It was common courtesy after all.
"Ah, yes, there was something I wanted to discuss with you face to face." He motioned to sit down on one of the couches in the office before sitting down in one himself. She followed his action and sat across from him with an expressionless face. "To put matters bluntly, I have an offer for you that you may find interesting." Munakata folded his arms across his chest and she could see his eyes sparkle.
When Munakata revealed his intentions to have her as a member of his workplace, she was honestly surprised. He made a clear statement that if she were to join Scepter 4 it would take up much of her day thus meaning she would have to dropout of high school. He was being so straightforward that Hiroto could not help but listen quietly at his explanation.
"Would you like some time to think about it?"
She shook her head. From that moment her true destiny flashed upon her eyes clearer then anything in the whole world. Munakata Reisi was the leader she would follow.
When her father heard about the recruitment to join Scepter 4 he only narrowed his dark eyes at her. Her mother stood beside him, hiding her gaping mouth behind her kimono sleeve.
"What did you say?" Her father asked.
"My first shift begins next week."
The next day, Hiroto found herself wheeling her luggage out of the estate just like her brother did four years ago.
a/n: im actually back into writing yet i just made another story omg.
and theres what a lucky strike that still needs to get updated as well as the rest of the stories.
but i love k too much.
this took a around 2 months to make due to the fact i wasn't pleased with what i came up with for the plot before.
though i do hope u all enjoy.
REVIEWS ARE SEXY.
LONGER REVIEWS ARE SEXIER.
THANKS GUYS.
