I swear, I didn't even mean to write this. I was reliving the pixel horror "Mad Father" and was filled with feels. Then, this just kinda happened. Annabelle was just kinda created in the spur of the moment. I hope she doesn't bug you guys too much. Without further interuption, I produce to you, The Dio and Aya fanfic, "Promises"
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"Dio, Dio!" A youthful female voice called. Its source was a seven year old girl with light blonde hair. Her dirty face was round with baby fat, but the rest of her figure was deathly thin. Her hair was covered in dirt and matted down with filth, and her pink dress was full of tears and also covered in stains and dirt. That didn't stop the eight year old Dio from thinking that she was the cutest younger sibling he could ever hope for.

"Yes, Annabelle?" He smiled as he finally reached the stream to clean the dirt off his face. Annabelle was close behind, hugging the boy when she reached him.

"Do you think we can go see that mansion today?"

Dio tensed. That mansion had always given him the creeps,"I don't know about that, Anna. It's better down here in the village. We shouldn't be snooping around a place like that. Only the great spirits could know what goes on in there."

"Come on, Dio, please." Annabelle pouted, "It's been my dream since forever!"

"It's been your dream for a month." Dio sighed. His sister was stubborn as an ox when it came to her dreams. They had hardly survived her last dream: jumping from the highest building they could find onto a hay cart.

"Please, Dio. It'll just a be peek. I wanna see it up close." Annabelle clapped her hands together and began to beg, "We can come straight back once I get a look at it."

Dio pursed his lips in thought. His sister would go with or without him if he kept denying her the trip. He griminced and gave in.

"Ok."

"Yay!" Annabelle hugged her brother tightly.

"But we're only going to look at it. After that it's straight back to the village." Dio gave her a determined look.

"Okay, lets go!" Annabelle was stopped by her bother.

"It's a day's walk for a round trip. We'll go tomorrow."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

-0-

The siblings took shelter at a barn for the night. Once the sun rose and the roosters crowed, Annabelle practically bounced on her brother.

"Come on, Dio! The mansion awaits!" She dragged him to outside, careful to avoid the people who owned the barn.

"Calm down, Anna. You need to eat first." Dio stopped her at the forest and dug through his pockets for his last food rations.

"Didn't you give me the rest two days ago?" The girl was confused at her brother's actions.

"I managed to get this from the barn. I washed it in the river last night." Dio held up a carrot.

"Dio! Stealing is wrong." Annabelle scolded her brother.

"If it keeps you alive, I'll chance it." He shoved the carrot in her face. Her expression softened as she pushed it back toward him.

"Dio, you've went longer without food than I have. You eat it."

He shook his head, "No, you are the top priority. You eat it."

"Fine, lets both eat it." Anna tried to compromise with him. She knew her brother wasn't going to give in easily and just eat the food.

Dio grumbled but nodded his head and snapped the carrot in half, purposefully making his sister's end bigger.

"Here." He handed it to her. Annabelle smiled and switched their portions.

"You need it more." She said stubbornly as she chomped her half down. Dio sighed to himself. Atleast he got her to eat something. His sister was the only thing he had left, and he wasn't going to lose her to starvation like he had lost his friends.

Once he finished his side of the carrot, Dio stood and patted away some of the dirt on his white shirt, now a hint of beige from all the filth. He would wash it once they returned.

"Hurry up, Dio! The less time we waste, the more time we have to look at the mansion!" Annabelle was already well ahead of her brother.

"Careful, Anna. It could be dangerous. You should stay closer to me." Dio grabbed his sister by her faded pink hairbow. Annabelle gave an annoyed grunt in response to her brother.

"I'm a big girl, Dio. I know how to be careful in the woods." She ripped out of his grasp. Dio nodded and let her take the lead, but continued watching her with sharp eyes. They both knew that the villagers mainly farmed, but the butcher should have decided to start hunting by now. Traps could be anywhere in the tall grass.

The trip there was fairly quiet aside from failed attempts at small talk caused by Annabelle. As the sun reached the middle of the sky, the pair made their way to the path that led to the large iron gates.
Annabelle was mesmerized by the sheer beauty of the stone masterpiece. She ran to the gates and tried to peer further into the gorgeous scenery.

"Dio, let's go in."

Dio's eyes widened as he ran to grab his sister, but she narrowly avoided it and slipped through the gate.

"Anna, you said we would just come to look and go straight back." He hissed as he beckoned her to pull back through the gate.

"I never said how close we could look." The girl giggled and carefully moved around the beautiful flowers, "This place is amazing!"

Dio easily slipped through the wide gaps in the gate and chased after his sister, "Anna, you'll get yourself killed. We need to leave."

"No, I won't. You're such a fraidy-cat, Dio." She laughed as she ran, her worn shoes long forgotten by the rose bush.

"Anna, get back here. I'm not letting you die because you wanted to be reckless. We're orphans, Anna. No one cares about us back home or here. These kind of actions are what get kids like us killed." Dio finally caught up to his sister and grabbed her long, blonde hair, "We're leaving now."

Annabelle pouted but followed her brother back to the gates, only stopping to put on her sandles which were now paper thin. They didn't speak as she climbed through the gates and he did the same. The atmosphere was all but enjoyable as they walked away. Silence filled the thick air. That was it for a few blissful seconds. But without anything to warn it was coming, a high pitched scream filled Dio's ears.

His sister had fallen victim to a well hidden bear trap.