6pm, a shugo chara! fanfic

I don't know where this came from. I just sort of found myself typing and I couldn't stop, so I'm not sure how good it is. It's probably not as good as some of only other one-shots, but I just felt the need to publish it.

Also I've referred to Souko and Kazuomi's marriage actually being a fake, so this is more based on the manga than the anime.

Tick-Tock

Lifting her weary head, Souko glanced up at the clock resting on the mantlepiece.

Tick-Tock

For perhaps the hundredth time that hour, the woman sighed heavily and lowered her head again. She instead focused her gaze on her hands which her placed neatly in her lap.

She often found herself looking at her hands. When she didn't want to face anyone or anything she would avert her eyes downwards and often find those two pale body parts.

Tick-Tock

Ding!

The clock began to chime as it hit 6pm. The repetitive sounds drifted through the Tsukiyomi-Hoshina residence's front room - the whole house even if you listened hard enough - but Souko was the only one to hear them. She was always the only one to hear them.

She briefly glanced over her shoulder and had a quick look at the open door which led to the hallway. As usual nobody was there. Sometimes her son would creep into his room without her noticing, not making a sound, but she knew all too well that he didn't want her to notice him in the first place. That fact made her already fragile heart break just a little more.

Turning back, she breathed out another sigh and slumped slightly in her seat. She was almost always in the house by herself nowadays. Kazuomi spent practically all of his time working at Easter. He had been since day one of their marriage. Well, their faked marriage, but she still hadn't told him so. He didn't need to know just yet.

Although, Tsukiyomi Souko - for she was still married to her dear Aruto - wished more than anything that she could tell the truth. If not for her, but for her children. However, revealing that small fact wouldn't be wise. She was sure that Kazuomi would only force her into marriage for real this time and she couldn't think of anything that disgusted her more. It was bad enough to pretend to he be married to the man, she didn't want to even think about the real thing even in her darkest nightmares.

But although she couldn't say anything just yet, one day she would tell her children. She would tell him as well and make sure that he left her son and her daughter alone once and for all.

At this thought Souko's heart clenched in despair. Out of the two she was sure her son had been hit hardest the most. Utau had found away out of Easter's web, Ikuto hadn't been so fortunate.

She hardly ever knew where he was these days. Kazuomi had told her many, many times that he was "doing valuable work to help the business at Easter", but to be frank that explanation was getting old now.

Just what was her son doing for Easter? What? The question drove her crazy sometimes. She didn't want her Ikuto to get caught up in this business and she was sure that if he knew about it Aruto would be horrified. He wouldn't stand for that and neither would she, but in her current state she was far too weak to do anything about it now.

Her son was worrying her to death. He wouldn't utter a word to her anymore, he was cold and passive, he was stoic, he was being thrown into a harsh, adult world sooner than he should have been, he skipped school (though, she recognised the fact that he was intelligent and despite his absence he still achieved high exam results) and worst of all he was being forced to work for his stepfather. Souko felt too broken to watch him suffer, but she couldn't turn away when her child was going through so much and so the pain already inside of her increased.

Her boy wasn't that more cheerful child he was ten years ago anymore. Ikuto was almost an adult. And she wished she could have been a bigger part of his life after her husband disappeared.

Oh her husband... She wished even more that he could have been there to watch Ikuto grow up.

Once more Souko looked up at the mantlepiece. In the centre was the small, silver clock that by now had stopped chiming and continued to softly tick away. It read 6.03pm.

The blonde woman smiled the tiniest of smiles. Aruto would've been home by now.

She could just imagine him walking through the front door after a long day at work, scooping up the two kids who would run into the hallway when they heard him. She could remember the smile on his face once he saw them and she remembered exactly how he would then move onto her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her softly on the forehead. But of course he wasn't around to do that anymore.

Breathing deeply, Souko stood up from her seat on the sofa and moved slowly towards the fireplace.

Aside from the clock, the mantle was occupied by four photographs all framed in silver borders with intricate, detailed designs running along them.

The photo frame to the left of the clock was the one she directed her attention to first.

She gingerly touched the cool glass with her fingertips, her fingers brushing over the image of herself.

In the photo she saw herself ten years ago dressed in a formal white suit jacket and skirt and stood beside the soulless figure of Ichinomiya Kazuomi. She remembered this day better than she'd have liked. This was the day she was dragged by him to the altar at which point she was too damaged to protest having just come out of hospital.

Souko frowned at the image. It was dull, lacking the energy the other photos displayed had and it was an unpleasant reminder of the unfortunate events in her life.

Feeling a sudden burst of hatred at the photo, she grabbed the frame off the stone surface, turned it over and slipped the picture out of the frame. She let the photograph fall to the floor at her feet and carefully placed it back where it belonged.

Now she truly smiled at the photo in its place. This image she had kept underneath, not having the heart to remove it at all. This time when she looked at the frame two happy, joyous faces beamed back.

A young Aruto and Souko stood side by side on their wedding day. There she was, in a large white dress, clutching a bouquet of white roses and looking the happiest she'd ever been in her life. And there he was right next to her, wrapping an arm around her waist and the other having a secure hold of her free hand. He stood looking exceptionally handsome, dashing and proud to have finally exchanged vows with the woman he was in love with.

Becoming overcome with nostalgia, Souko found herself having to wipe a small tear from the corner or her eye.

"Aruto... Please come home soon."

Aruto would have been home by now all those years ago. She believed he would come back some day, she truly did, but when that some day would be was unknown to her. Yet she still trusted him. He wouldn't just leave like that and she was correct to assume that his sudden departure had been to do with Easter, the company he was supposed to take over.

The woman swept her eyes over the other three photographs. There was one of herself and her children, one of her stood with the Hotori family and another of Ikuto and Utau together taken just before their lives took a turn for the worst.

The images before her were fond reminders of the past. She didn't doubt that those happy times would return and she knew that if she just waited a little longer then sure enough her husband would return, she could reveal her secret to Kazuomi and their lives would turn around.

6.05pm.

Tick-Tock

Taking another look at the hallway, Souko knew that nobody would be coming home any time soon.

Tick-Tock

But Aruto would have.

Tick-Tock

He would have been home by now.