Story Title: Days, One By One

Rating: T

Genre: Action/Romance/Drama

"Ahh! Big sister, look! Look!" the little girl pointed towards the flashing lights that lit up the sky. The little girl looked like her older sibling, her dark hair swishing with every turn of her head. Her eyes were a dark blue. It was the annual spring festival, and the two sisters were sitting in the grass watching the fire explode next to the stars.

"Yes…" the older sister replied. The older sister looked like the younger, only more mature. Her eyes were purple. She kept a strong grip on the younger one's hand, just in case, she didn't want the little one to get lost.

"Isn't it pretty, big sister?"

"It is very pretty, Aki." The older sister patted Aki's head.

"You're very pretty, Mari!" Aki exclaimed. "You're prettier than the stars and fireworks and bunnies and flowers combined!" She stretched her arms out wide to prove her point. Mari sniffed. Her sister was so kind. Gently, she grabbed her and held her close to her heart. Aki squeezed her back.

"Thank you, Aki." The two spent the night watching the pretty fireworks and the stars, until Aki fell asleep, and Mari carried the little one back to their home, where their parents fought, as usual.

"Damn it, you're so stupid! Staying out this late! It's just a festival!" Mari's father screamed at her. Mari covered Aki's ears. She didn't need to hear this.

"I'm sorry, Father." She said solemnly. Her mother pulled on her husband's sleeve.

"Don't yell at her, it's not her fault!" Her mother said quickly. She braced herself while the man slapped her across the face. She fell to the floor, cradling her cheek.

"You!" Her father pointed at Mari. "Take the brat to her room, then I can deal with you!"

"Yes, Father." Mari walked quietly to her room, the one both sisters shared. She walked out, smiling at the snoring Aki. She got on her knees in front of her father. She bowed until her nose was touching the cold floor. One of the most known acts to show dishonor to themselves.

"I'm sorry, Father, for all the trouble I have caused. Please, within your kindness, please forgive me!" Mari whispered. Secretly, behind her bored expression, was curdling blood.

"You're the heir to this family, and you can't do a damn thing right!" Her father grabbed her dark ponytail and pulled it up, up until her feet barely touched the floor.

"I'm sorry." Mari said slowly. Her face was emotionless. She held back tears from the pain.

"Sorry's not good enough this time!" He threw her up against the wall. Mari coughed, the breath escaping her a bit. The father pulled onto the ponytail. Her mother gasped.

"Stop it, Jinen!" Her mother pleaded. She grabbed her husband's hand and pryed it from her daughter's hair.

"Shut up!" He hit her in the stomach. She was about to scream when Mari reacted. She came over and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Hmmph. Worthless. I don't know why I stay here." Jinen straightened and headed toward the door. "Going out with the guys. I'll be back in a few days." He walked out the door and slammed it shut. The two ladies both knew where he was going. To the clubs, to get pleasure from prostitutes. Mother always cried when she saw him bring one home, like a lost puppy. They were more beautiful than her.

"I'm sorry, Mother." Mari let go of her mother's mouth. The mother was crying.

"Go to bed, Himari." Her mother said quietly.

"Yes, Mother. Good night." Mari bent down and kissed her mother's tear-soaked cheek. She straightened and wiped her mouth with her green sleeve. Mari doesn't like physical contact. She dislikes people. Mari walked into the hall and into her bedroom. She laid down next to a sleeping Aki. Mari closed her eyes and eventually fell into a fitful sleep.

She was awoken with something covering her eyes. It was a black blindfold. Mari squirmed around, but something grabbed her wrists. Something cold was placed on one of her wrists, the other one grabbed firmly.

Handcuffs, she thought. Mari remained calm, slowly speaking. Thankfully the intruder had not gagged her.

"Where's the little one?" she said.

"I gave her some… sleeping, medicine. I used the whole thing on her, so I have to simply tie you up." It was her mother's voice. The voice was dry and rasped. A cold, wet, cloth was pressed against the sides of her mouth. She was completely handicapped.

"Aki's already in the car, hurry up… get up!" she said hastily. She was breathing hard, as if she just ran a marathon. Mari knew she just took something, probably some drugs. Mari was worried when Aki would wake up again.

Suddenly all three of them were in the car, and speeding off the street like a bullet. Mari's handcuffs were now on both wrists, and she was handcuffed to the back of the seat's armrest. She heard Aki's soft snores to her left. The door was on her right. She moved her legs to where they were wrapped around Aki's. She gently pulled and tugged on Aki's ankles and knees until she felt her head bob onto her shoulder.

Suddenly the car swerved to the right. Mari banged up against the door. She felt cold air. The car alarm started to beep. The mother didn't shut the door hard enough, and thankfully her mother didn't hear the beeping. Mari riled up all her strength and pulled the chain against the metal pole that held the arm to the chair. Her wrists ached.

Bang, bang, bang.

The chains snapped. I knew it, Mari thought, cheap prank handcuffs. Mari freed herself from the gag, but the blindfold was too tight. She felt her way around the car door until she felt the handle. She turned it. It wasn't locked. She braced herself back as the car door flew open.

"What the?" The mother screamed. She let go of the wheel. They swerved to the left. Mari grabbed Aki and, using the back of the seat as a board, jumped out of the car. She turned right before they landed on the hard asphalt. Mari's back burned. She sat up just before the car ran into a curb, then a wooden pole that held the telephone lines. A small fire started at the head of the car. Mari smelled the smoke. Her mother was still in the front driver seat, but looking back. Mari felt her eyes stare at her blindfold. Mari smiled. Mari was still blind, but she could tell that her mother was bleeding. The handcuffs jingled as she set Aki down on the street and stood.

"What'cha gonna do now, little bunny?" her mother coughed. "Run away?"

"I will." Mari said aloud.

"What about the brat?" Her mother called out.

Mari flinched. She thought aloud. "I'll leave her. She can forget me, and live in a better home. It'll be perfect if you die."

"Good luck with that." Her mother laughed. She started to cough, wet, sloppy coughs. "It better work out like that or Aki will die!"

"I'll have to make precautions, then. I'm smarter than you think, dumbass." It felt good to say that to her mother.

Her mother cackled. She gasped for air. "See you."

"I hope you burn." Mari called. She knelt over Aki and brushed her bangs out of her closed eyes. Mari turned, away from the car, away from the screaming sirens growing nearer, and away from Aki. Her blindfold didn't bother her anymore. "Forgive me, Aki. Forgive me by forgetting I exist." She started walking, to the right, and eventually, when the sirens stopped and yelling for backup was heard, Mari was nowhere in sight. She was in the shadows, walking away, smiling.

My green kimono got dirtier and dirtier, I could tell. My hair was still in a ponytail, the black strands waving behind me. I felt something drip down my chin, down my neck. I stopped and touched it. It was warm. I held my hand out in front of my mouth and I tasted it.

Blood.

It was coming from my nose. I wiped it with my sleeve. I slipped off my sandals, they were starting to hurt. I felt the cool summer's air sweep into my socked toes. I started to walk at a slower pace. I was far away from my home.

'Aki… forgive your sister.' I thought. 'Forget about me. Mother… don't ever talk about me again, if you're ever alive after this. Aki… you're an only child… Forget about me, little one…' I sent her that message through my head. I hope she'd get it.

I wondered if my plan could work. If it did, Aki would be safe. I walked and walked, but my legs never got tired. I started to wonder what would happen next.

"Where am I?" I said aloud. The silence was screaming at me.

I touched my nose hole. It stopped bleeding. I hadn't stopped crying, though. All this time secret tears streamed down my cheeks. The tears mixed with some of my blood, making red tears stream down my chin and neck. I started singing a song, a song that gave me courage to keep my pace, I made up the words as I went along the lonely sidewalk.

"Do, not worry, your heart is all right…"

I suddenly tripped. I got on my knees and felt the ground. I was walking up on a long stair case. I got up and slowly felt my way up the stairs.

"It beats strong, resonating with your sound soul…"

Step, step, step… one foot after the other.

"Don't be afraid, because your heart is here,"

I reached the top. I was slowly lurching forward now. It was difficult to breathe. And to walk. I'm so tired…

"You are your soul,"

"And I am your heart,"

I stopped. I sensed a figure in the night. A shadow has come to eat this sinful spirit, then?

"For I have stolen your heart…"

I accept that fate.

"For I have stolen your precious heart…"

My knees buckled. My eyes closed through my blindfold. I fell onto my side. Everything was cold.

I am going to die here.

I felt at peace.

I was falling.

Falling.

Falling.

Down.

I opened my eyes. It was pitch black. I looked at myself. I was wearing a purple and white dress with frills and high knee socks, and high black boots. My sleeves were long and puffed out at the shoulders and wrists. From the waist down the short dress puffed out. My hair was down. I had no handcuffs or blindfold.

I felt ground beneath my feet. I was on a platform. In front of me stood a mirror. I walked up to it. I saw cherry blossom petals slowly fall from behind me. I turned, nothing fell. Looking back at the mirror, I fell on my butt, eyes wide.

All I saw in the mirror was myself, only a giant shadow.

"I am your shadow, indeed." My mirrored self said, reading my mind. "I'm the darkness you keep locked up in your heart." The mirror flashed. The shadow-me was gone, and replacing it was a red heart with a silver keyhole in the middle of it. The pink blossoms changed into glass shards. One of them cut me. My pure red blood dripped, and somehow landed into the mirror. Like ripples in the water, my shadow appeared again. I got onto my knees.

"Who are you?" I yelled. The voice echoed at me, scared, lonely, lost.

"What do you wish?"

I thought… I looked at her, my vision blurry. I was crying. She straightened her back, towering over me.

"A new beginning!"

"Find the key to unlock your madness." Suddenly a katana came flying out from the mirror. The shadow smirked. It struck me in my right eye. Suddenly everything was red… then black.

Next Chapter!

"Who are you?" I looked up at a pair of golden eyes.

"Do you know what you are?"

"Meister..."