Chapter 4.5: A Deadly Dandelion Blooms! Sayako Lionet: The New Spirit Detective!
A mansion in the woods is shown on a dark and stormy night*
'For as long as I could remember, I lived here.'
Many kids are playing together in a living room*
'We were orphans, all taken in at a young age. Our parents, they were good to us.'
A middle aged man with black hair and a mustache is smoking a pipe on a chair his laughing as the 2 year old boy on his lap plays with a choochoo train and a woman with long black hair is feeding other little ones*
'It was a perfect place for us. I was so naive back then...'
The picture pans to Sayako, long, blonde hair, green eyes, about as tall as Yusuke was, slim but fit*
'My name is Sayako Lionet. I'm the 4th Spirit Detective of earth. Koenma has asked for my help on the toughest mission yet. The more I plunge into this line of work, the more I seem to reflect on my life...
I lived with my caretakers: Mr. and Mrs. Fugaro. I never could accept them as my true parents. No matter how generous they were. I had sensed something was off. From a young age of 6, I had stood up to all the jerk kids in the orphanage who wouldn't play nice.
One day a kid, Bolova, went to far. He was aggressive. I had it out with him for being a bully many times. He had forced a little girl down the laundry shoot during a game of hide and seek... Kuya was her name. She was only 4 when she died from that tragic fall. I beat the hell out of Bolova but I was the one who was grounded for using violence to get my point across: condemned behavior in the Fugaro house. That's when I first realized why my gut was right. Not what I did- no. The talk that proceeded with Mr. Fugaro...'
Mr Fugaro walks in Sayako's room. She's watering flowers in the window of her room.*
"Sayako?"
She looks over to him*
"Sir?"
"Let's talk." *He sits down on a chair next to her bed*
She sits on her bed across from him*
"Your mother told me you still haven't apologized to Bolova. You busted his face up pretty bad y'know." He said.
"She isn't my mom. You aren't my dad." *Sayako crosses her arms*
"I'm sorry. Your parents were killed when you were very young. It must be hard. You know I've adopted you kids because of how valuable you all are. You're almost 7 years old now. You've grown so beautiful. Such value.." Mr. Fugaro says kindly.
"You always say that value stuff.." Sayako said with backsass as she closes her eyes. "I won't apologize! He deserved it! He's 7! He didn't have to push her!" She began to cry.
"But you see, Bolova's face has great value!" Fugaro says delightfully.
"But where's Kuya?! She must be value too!" Sayako cried more.
"She was..." He looks up at the ceiling lights, "Of no value to us." He smiles delightfully.
Sayako is shaking* "..."
'So Naive. I was so naive. This was my first encounter at which I realized this orphan home was not ordinary and why my feelings about it being so strange made sense. His smile, the overuse of the term 'value' between the Fugaros, but the way he valued Bolova's face over Kuya's life. Trauma at a young age had caused me to mature faster. My suspicions only grew, but I internalized my stress. One day a young girl, only 3 was crying because her elder 7 year old sister was adopted. ours was not a normal orphanage. The parents didn't come to our mansion. Mr. or Mrs. Fugaro would take the 7 year olds when we matured our value. At least, that's how the Fugaros put it. We were brought in at 1 years old and left at 7 for adoption specifically. It was weird, but how would we know? We were orphan kids. While the 3 year old was crying about her older sister being adopted, Mrs. Fugaro was cheering her up. That's when she inspired me to do my own research.'
"I want her back! Is she coming back?" she cried.
Mrs. Fugaro smirked "Her value will be among us, always." she hugged her.
'Where was this value? I had to know.
I looked in their room one day when they were out to Bolova's adoption process. He reached his maturity value: ready to be adopted as a 7 year old. I saw a drawer with a picture of mine on top of it. I drew it for Mr. and Mrs. Fugaro when I was only 4. When you turn 4 in the Fugaro Orphanage, or when you first speak, you choose your own last name. I was so enthusiastic about mine, Lionet, I had drawn a lion. It was my favorite animal then. Blonde, on the prowl, majestic. I wanted to be one as a young child. Sayako Lionet. It was in that array of drawers, I learned the ultimate truth of this place.
Our real names and pictures were in folders in a drawer, pictures year by year, a price above the name, and a note clipped to the other side of the folder. I found mine and read it. My real name? Sayako Yaogo. Status: Active. Plan A: Randsome.'
"Mister and Misses Yaogo, as you can see, Sayako is alive. If you ever want to see your daughter again, you will meet us at Shinkuji Station west of Momaku Airstrip on October 13th at 2:30 AM. You will provide the amount instructed. No funny business or we kill her. Then you. Then everyone you know." - F
'I trembled upon reading the note and comprhending the gravity of my situation. Then I saw Kuya Hazami's status marked in red: Status: Terminated and her parents were noted to be terminated as well for putting up too much of a fight during the capture phaze. Plan B: Black Market Slave.'
Sayako is panting, crying. She sees the Fugaros pull up in their fancy car. She panics and runs out the back door. She keeps running as it starts to rain. She is panting in fear. It gets even darker outside. After an hour of running and stopping, she trips and falls hitting her head. Passing out from injury.*
eyes begin to open*
'That's when I met my first real parental figure, martial arts tutor, firearms instructor, and botanical teacher: Jano Sensei. He had navy blue hair a spiky round afro, brown eyes, strong build, wearing a karate uniform.'
"Please blink twice if you understand me, little girl."
blinks twice*
"Hm! Good!" he smiled "You alright? You were out cold."
no response*
"Take your time. Anything you need you let me know. I'm not sure where you came from, but I'll help you get where ever you need to go tomorrow. It's dangerous out there tonight." he smiled
"Where do I go..?" Sayako muttered hopelessly.
"Don't you have parents?" Jano asked.
She shivers with sorrow*
Jano looks at her and smiles "You can stay with me as long as like. Just let me know before you leave so I can give you some fresh clothes, food, water and a map. I won't sleep well if you don't! I'll be on the couch if you need me. Be good to my bed tonight!"
He begins to walk off into the other room*
"Who are you?" Sayako asks.
"Call me Jano for now, and you are?" He asked back.
"Sayako," she reponded.
"Sleep well, Sayako," He wished and walked out.
'He was different. My instincts hit me with a sense of companionship I never had with an adult until now. He just wanted me to be okay. He didn't trap me, he didn't abandon me. He gave me a choice.
A choice.
For the first time in my life, I knew why I was excited about my last name:
It was my choice.
Something I had none of elsewhere. Jano Sensei, helped me realize this. I already trusted him. I lived with him as his student for 12 years. He taught me Martial Arts, Botany, firearms, and introduced me to my favorite books today. Jano Sensei was a wonderer living off the land in his own cabin. He had retired and saught new meaning. He insisted on paying me for odd jobs. Jano Sensei wanted me to enter society comfortably when I decided to. He was a great man. We had a genuine connection. However, Sensei urged me to finally answer some questions one day.'
Sayako is watering flowers in her room as Jano walks in*
"Sayako, it's been great having you here to keep me company. Listen, I'm sorry, but from now on to stay here I need something from you." Jano said stoicly.
"More work Sensei?" Sayako asks
"No. See you haven't been able to excell in your combat training recently. Your potential is there but you aren't able to reach it." Jano retorted
"What is that supposed to mean?" Sayako asked.
Jano exhales*
"When someone is blocked off from their full potential, it means they have a strain on his or herself. Your body is in perfectly good shape! The daily physical routine training we keep is great. Your clearness in studies is even more exceptional. You planted those beautiful Dandelions and even kept the greenhouse better than I ever could. I commend you. However, if you check out mentally and physically, then emotionally is the only place left. It's time you told me about the mansion. Everything."
"Okay..." Sayako confessed the story.
"Wow, thats an awful lot to have kept from me all this time. I'm not mad. Just surprised, really. Don't you want to see your parents?"
"I'll be honest sensei, I want to kill the Fugaros. A sick, twisted people taking kids from their parents and holding them for randsome while making it seem like an orphanage. An underground operation of vileness and avarice: a great deal of people will continue losing their freedom to live normal lives. I was too smart for them. I will not allow them to ruin more lives. Meeting my parents has never occured to me, sensei. It won't solve a thing. I need the strength to kill them and to defend this world from evil. If we don't tend to the ridding of toxins plaguing this earth's soil, how will we ever grow prosperous?"
"I see... So you're not pursuing this as revenge for you, Sayako? It's noble indeed that you have someone else in mind. Allow me to help. We'll get those children back to their families!" Jano proposed.
"I'm sorry sensei, but I must carry this out on my own," Sayako said with dismay.
"Foolish. To bear such a burden alone will tear you apart inside. Don't you at least want to see your family after all of this? It will bring you peace of mind. Don't forget Sayako, you deserve happiness," Jano stressed to her.
"My happiness will be measured in my ability to defend this world from evil, from putting my capters in their place, from saving those in need... Sensei, I must take this action soon and alone. It would be best if I left. Thank you for everything. All of your teachings, your hospitality, your kindness. I'll never forget you."
Jano Sensei sat quietly. He understood he was powerless to Sayako's will. As she left the room to pack her things, she couldn't help but feel an incredible sadness emitting from her teacher*
'Before I left, I told Jano Sensei I was planning to go get a job, and my own apartment. When he asked me about my plan for the Fugaros, I told him, I'd save that as my next priority. As I left that day, Jano Sensei said something I'll never forget.'
"Sayako, you are beautiful, bright, enjoyable, ambitious, and full of good nature. I'll see your face in every dandelion. Just remember, we all need help sometimes. Reach out more to those who care for you. They're a great reason to be alive."
Jano smiles gratefully*
'We bid each other farewell and I found my apartment and job within a week, thanks to sensei's paying me for odd jobs all these years. That was when I began my plot for taking down the Fugaros and freeing those kids.
I departed for a surprise entrance through the weakest window in the mansion.
What I found, was a catastrophe.
The place was quiet. I could sense fear. As I walked down the hallways I felt a dark presence. My heart raced as I opened the Fugaro's door with a 9 millimeter in my hand. I opened the door.
Blood on the curtains, the bed. Two bodies on the ground. One closest is on its back.
Sayako turns the body over and screams in disbelief. It's Jano Sensei, knife in chest. Mrs Fugaro is dead next to him, bullet holes through her chest. She hears footsteps run toward her and she hides behind the door in a panic. She holds her breath, and listens closely. As a footstep steps into her calculated point of attack, she draws the gun!
The silouette smacks it out of her hand!
She screams, letting all her panic out with her hands out and eyes shut!
A mysterious explosion goes off under the opponent!*
A green demon is laying, with its legs exploded off on the bed. She screams*
"What are you?!" Sayako cried out.
"Sayako.. You bitch.. You dare attack.. Your father?" It said.
"My.. Wife.. Such an evil human.. we got along... Heheheheh... before I die... just know we killed your parents for leaving us... We took.. Your value... eh..." The demon said panting heavily. Dying, Mr. Fugaro smiles.
Sayako cries remembering Mr Jano's words about having comrades.
She is on the floor in despair.*
'Odd it was. I've always been articulate, but opening my burdens to others still plagues me and yet I could stay quiet enough to deceive the enemy after witnissing my first tragedy. The children were hiding under their beds in fear over what had transpired.
Before I went in to get another good look at that thing, I heard another creaking. I pulled my gun and it spoke'
"Hello there! Congratulations on vanquishing the treacherous kidnapping demon. His name is Fugaro. He pursued being a rich demon by making a profit off of human lives in the human world. You, my fine lady, have been selected for an honorary position," a young girl's cheery voice said.
"Who are you?" Sayako shouts
"My name is Botan and I'm not here to hurt you girlfriend, I'm here to help you and give you an opportunity," The voice said.
'She came out. She had no idea of my loss but her cheerfulness helped my sanity. She got the SDF soldiers to retrieve the demon body'
"I know you have a lot going on, but we would like to offer you a job. You have developed a spirit power without even knowing it, your instincts allowed you to fight a foe in unfavorable circumstances, you are smart, and strong. Sayako Lionet, Koenma, ruler of the spirit world has chosen you to be the next spirit detective! You will be paid handsomely to hunt rogue demons."
'I decided. I told the authorities of this underground operation, removing Mr. Fugaro, a demon, from the story and blaming the human Mrs. Fugaro to avoid leaking further intel. The kids and their parents were restored. It was a day that should have been happy but I became cold. My parents were killed. My closest parent and teacher, Jano Sensei, I had failed. I should have learned my lesson, to be more extraverted, to meet new people and share my feelings and goals with others. But I still felt like a loner. 19 and damaged, I went on expeditions to train my powers. As fate would have it. I killed the demon Fugaro with my spirit power: Spirit Grenades. My spirit energy allows me cause a blast that exerts extreme air pressure with yellow orbs I conjure in my palms. Essentially, an explosion of wind. I close my hand to detonate them.
I wanted to bring justice, so I took the job. Cahier eyecandy wasn't my style. I wasn't ever schooled, so this job came all the more easy to me. I self educated. I fought and trained for 3 years and through some intense demon fights, I increased my demon energy to A class levels. Hard to believe, but my loss also made my training all the more progressive.
Then a mere 3 months later I met Suichi. Or as his friends call him, Kurama. As I sat in the cafe reading my book on botany, he walked up to me with flowers. He was introverted and friendly like me, nonetheless he talked to me about the book. He was so affable, on the way to give his mom the bouque. So we exchanged numbers and grew even closer once I told him of my situation. He didn't judge me. He was not scared. I just didn't tell him about my work as spirit detective. He asked to date me. I stubbornly told him my personal life might make it too overbearing. then he said
"You shouldn't try to bear it all alone."
'I fell in love. Like Jano sensei's words and kindness, his compassion and intellegence all resonated in Suichi. We had the same green eyes and green thumb. He gave me a dandelion out of thin air once. I thought it was magic before I knew his relation to Yusuke Urameshi.
Now Koenma has sent me on a mission. After meeting Suichi's friends including the last spirit detective, Yusuke, I'm off to demon world with Suichi and Itsuki. We're going to try and find this Hiei guy and other old allies of the previous spirit detective.
I have a feeling my past may come back to haunt me in demon world. Though I've had many previous fights with demons, this feeling is one I cannot shake.
Nonetheless, I will fight on. I'm Sayako Lionet, codename: Kamaki. I am the 4th spirit detective and I will save the earth from this evil.'
