A/N: I would like to thank my four wonderful reviewers, Hanashi O Suru, jy24, Ern Estine 13624, and Nella Moonblood Royalle, for reviewing. Knowing that you guys are reviewing motivates me to write! So I'd like to dedicate this chapter to you guys. Once again, I give credits to my best friend for proof reading and editing my story!
Warning: Rape.
The Dove's Black Cage
[ Our first meeting... ]
Lately, there has been an unusual couple coming to the orphanage. They were...well, gay. Oh, no. Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong about that. It's just... Well. How do I explain this? One of them had- actually, both of them had quite long hair. One of them had really bright red hair, while the other had dark brown hair. The guy with red hair had half of his face covered with a white mask, making him look quite suspicious in my opinion. Before he'd enter the orphanage he'd have to stump down on a cigarette. I'm guessing he was scolded by the other.
Speaking of such, the other one seemed to be a softy. He was always polite, always treating the kids with such gentle manners before entering the orphanage, and always lecturing the guy with red hair. These two guys would come once in a while to convince the women taking care of us orphans to let them adopt a child. Of course, the rude, mean ladies always said no. Saying something about how they were a sin and bla, bla, bla.
I think it was before winter came when the man with red hair broke. The orphan's who stood anywhere near the couple all ran away when the man smashed his fist right into the wall beside him. And I mean, literally! Made a hole in the poor wall... Gosh. Anyways. He glared at the two female nuns, startling them as they huddled close to each other for safety, and began yelling at them. What was it again? 'Lesbian nuns always having sex underneath the Cross of Jesus and who know's what else.'
Oh, boy.
I tried holding in my laugh but I couldn't. The man with red hair had a funny look on his face, he looked somewhat constipated, while his partner seemed like he was about to faint right on the spot. I cracked up. I laughed so hard, I had to hug my stomach while I fell on my knees. I think I even cried a bit from how hard I was laughing.
The two arguing trios were somewhat startled at hearing me laugh. The man with dark brown hair slowly made his way towards me after I finished laughing. He knelt down in front of me, barring a gentle smile that somewhat startled me, and held out his hand towards me.
"What's your name?"
I blinked in confusion before I sniffed darkly and looked away. Remember! Always be mean to others because that's what they deserve! "None of yer business, twat!"
Good job, boy. I deserve a pat on the back. Once again I was surprised when the man gave out a soft chuckle. He reached for my hand and pulled me to my feet.
"My name is Mana. Mana D. Campbell-Marian."
I scoffed and yanked my hand out of his. "So what? Di' ya expect me ta tell ya my name? Ha! Yer so stupid!"
Sneering, I kicked his shin before I ran out of the building. I heard the guy- what was his name? Mana?- yelp in the background, as the guy with red hair cursed and ran after me. I squeaked in surprise when the man with red hair tackled me to the ground.
"Ow! What da bloody hell do ya think yer doin', ya bloody wanker?! Le' me go!"
I elbowed the guy in the chest but I only received a grunt in response.
"Damn, brat! You better apologize to my husband, you little shit!"
Oh. So that's what they are. A married couple.
In the end, the stupid red-haired guy dragged me back and dumped me on the floor in front of Mana.
"Marian!", Mana chastised his husband.
"Apologize, you shit!" 'Marian' yelled at me.
I glared back into a single brown orb before snapping my glare towards Mana who, yet again knelt in front of me. Mana smiled apologetically and pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket. He began wiping a dark smudge from my cheek, which had appeared I fell on dirt all thanks to that red-haired bastard.
"I'm sorry for Marian's behaviour. But I promise he's a really good man." Mana commented softly.
"Hey!"
"I don' care! Jus' leave me alone!" I was about to get up when Marian slammed a hand hard, but I mean really hard, onto my shoulder. I hissed in pain. Golly, that sure was gonna leave a bruise.
"I. Said. Apologize." Marian said in a really dark voice.
I shuddered involuntarily before I looked at Mana in defeat.
"M'sorry.." I muttered.
"Louder!"
Flinching, I took a long, loud breath before I spoke in a loud voice. "I said I'm sorry! There! Are ya fucking happy, bastard?!"
Marian snorted as he stood once again. "Stupid, ignorant brat."
Mana sighed softly. "You two are so troublesome. Could you two possibly be long lost siblings?"
"Hey!" Marian and I yelled in unison.
Mana huffed out a laugh before he helped me back onto my feet. "Kidding, kidding."
By the end of the day, Mana and Cross, whom I now got to know by his name, apologized to the nuns for the mishap. Mostly it was Mana apologizing while Cross continued glaring at them.
Boy. Those two were a handful.
[ Identities... ]
Those two soon began visiting the orphanage quite often. Requesting to see me, but I, of course, denied their visits. Well. Tried to. Cross would end up barging into my room with Mana in tow, apologizing profusely. While I sat beside the window, rolling my eyes as usual and nodded my head towards my bed. Mana would drag Cross to my bed and sit down before twenty questions started.
What is your name? 'Don't have one.'
How old are you? 'Six.'
What do you like to eat? 'Sweets..'
Do you have any favorite snacks? 'Ice cream..'
What do you read? 'Anything?'
Do you have a favorite author? '...Noemi Rêver-Träger.'
Do you have any friends? 'No.'
Do you like any holidays? 'No..'
And I would merely try my best to answer most of these questions. Well, Mana's questions. Cross didn't ask anything. Mana kept on asking and asking, soon enough I was getting tired of it. I would send a pleading look at Cross and Cross, seemingly annoyed as well, would shove Mana with his shoulder.
"Shut up. You're speaking too much."
And Mana would blush before he mumbled a soft apology. There was an awkward silence between us three before I spoke up.
"Do you two work?"
I regretted asking it afterward because Mana soon started tale-telling about how Cross is an amazing Chief Officer in the Dark Order Police Station whom would soon probably switch to working as an FBI Agent. Hooray him. And then Mana would start talking about how he's an amazing pianist who would also soon become well known around the world for his music. Hooray for you too.
Again, Mana would apologize once more as they both got up and leave. I watched them from the window as the pair would climb into a small black car, Cross flipping me off before he shut the car door. Bristling with anger, I ended up kicking the foot of a nearby table.
Those two were really annoying. But slowly, day by day, the became a little less annoying. I had begun warming up to them.
[ Family.. ]
I think it was on Christmas when the pair came back with 'good news'. Mana seemed giddy as Cross barged into my room once again while I was brushing my long reddish-brown hair that reached down to my shoulder blades. The married couple sat on my bed as I tied my hair back in a low ponytail and pulled a chair towards them. Taking a seat, I raised a questioning eyebrow at them.
Mana bit his lip before he erupted.
"We're adopting you!"
I looked at the pair in front of me before I began laughing. I continued laughing for who knows how long until slowly my laughter died.
"C'mon, Mana. You can't be serious. This is some joke right?"
Mana seemed somewhat hurt but smiled nonetheless. Cross snorted at this.
"Nope! You're being adopted by us." And with that, he handed me a manila folder.
Inside the folder were documents confirming Mana's words. And also... I had a name. A name.
Allen Walker.
I looked up at them, tears prickling the corners of my eyes.
"Allen Walker..?"
Mana smiled gently. "I wasn't sure if you wanted either of our last names so we decided on this name for you."
Cross snorted. "Allen comes from that idiot's deceased dog and Walker comes from a phrase he never stops saying."
"Marian!" Mana yelled.
"What phrase?" I asked softly, ignoring the fact that I was named after a dog.
Mana looked back at me before he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Always look forward, never stop walking."
So cliche, I thought to myself as a heart filled smile crept onto my face for the first time in my lifetime and looked at them. Crystalline tear drops dripped down my pale cheeks as I hugged the manila folder to my chest.
"Thank you. Thank you so much, Mana and Cross. Thank you."
I was soon a blubbering mess as I cried and sobbed, thanking the married couple profusely.
I finally had a family.
Name: Allen Walker Age: 6 D/O/B: 12/25 Parents: Cross Marian, Mana D. Campbell-Marian
[ Home.. ]
Mana, Cross, and I had recently moved to Japan after I was adopted. My hometown was London, England, but Mana wanted a new start with me here. We rented a two-story floor house within a calm neighborhood in Kyoto. Cross had brought me several books, pencils, erasers, and paper. Mana then took it upon himself to teach me how to read and write. Through his lessons, my speech had been corrected and he even threw in some manners. While Cross took care of the house and worked, Mana had even taught me how to play the piano before he decided that I needed to enter school. I noticed that the people here in my neighborhood are really nice and helpful.
[ School.. ]
Mana placed me in an elementary school not too far from home. I think it's like five blocks away. Cross always drops me off to school in the morning before heading to work. After school ended, Mana would be waiting for me at the front gate. A small smile on his tan features while his long messy wavy hair was tied back in a low ponytail. He'd take my hand and ask me how was school. I'd start off by telling him what I had for breakfast, how Ms. Suzumi's skirt got caught between two cabinet doors, what I learned, what I ate for lunch, what I did during playtime, what I wrote, what I painted, what instrument I played, etc. A never ending list of all the things I did. And Mana would listen to it all. Still smiling warmly down at me, occasionally letting out a laugh whenever I said something silly. My life with Mana and Cross was perfect. I had great friends at school. My teacher's adored me even though I was a little bit rough around the edges.
[ Dangerous.. ]
There was, however, this elderly man around his fifty or sixties, that would always greet us after we arrived home. Like everyone else in the neighborhood, he seemed really nice. He constantly came to our home to bring in sweets, spare clothes, fruits, vegetables, anything he had. Mana seemed to really like this old man. Warmed up to him enough to even allow him to babysit me while I was playing out in the front yard. But there was something off about him that I didn't like. I don't know what it was, but it was on the tip of my tongue. I guess Cross also didn't like him since he would ignore the neighbor's greetings. Or maybe that was him just being Cross.
[ Beautiful.. ]
Mana told me about a man named Neah D. Campbell. He said he was a very eccentric man, constantly traveling around the world that was meant to be my Godfather. Neah was Mana's twin brother, except he was quite the opposite. He constantly liked pranking people and would skip on work to visit Mana whenever he could, or would always whine about everything. But beneath all that, he was a good person. He was also known as a Musician but also a writer. Sometimes I found myself giggling whenever Mana would talk about his twin brother because he would make this constipated face. In the end, Mana would always scold me before he'd chase me around the house yelling, 'I'm the tickle monster! And I'm going to get you, young man!'. I'd run away from him, screaming and laughing until he cornered me in my bedroom. He'd tackle me onto my bed and would start tickling me. 'Uncle, uncle!', I'd yell and Mana would pull away. He'd lay down with me and we would stare at each for a few moments before we'd start laughing together. After that, Mana would tuck me in bed and would then pull a chair right beside me, a book in hand. 'Ready for one of Miss Noemi's stories?' And I would nod my head excitedly, quietly listening to Mana's voice as he read the story to me. His voice would lull me to sleep before I finally passed out.
[ Yet I didn't expect for any of this to happen.. ]
A week before school vacation started, there was a sudden and heavy thunderstorm so Mana decided that I shouldn't go. Cross had left early for work that morning, which left me and Mana home alone. I was in my bedroom, looking out the back window as thick, fat droplets of water would smack onto the glass before they slid down. I traced them with my pale digits out of boredom until I heard a loud crash mixed in with a loud boom of thunder. I jumped and looked at my closed bedroom door. The lights went out and even though it was daytime, my room went eerily dark. I decided to call my father, but, when I did, I didn't receive any response. Fear and worry started to build in my chest at the same time. I slid off my bed and went over to my door. Pressing my ear against the wood, I listened to any unusual sounds. There was this sickeningly wet sound coming from downstairs. As if something was being plunged into liquid. I quietly opened the door and peeked my head out. The squelching became louder and louder as I neared the veranda of the stairs. Another lightning rumbled in the background, the flash was bright enough to make out the silhouette of two figures on the floor.
[ Stop.. ]
It was the next door neighbour on top of Mana. A kitchen knife in his hands tainted with a thick red substance as it was plunged into Mana over and over again. There was this loud pitched screech I heard when another flash brightened the room. Ah. That was me screaming. Big mistake. The old man noticed me before he smiled in a creepy manner. 'Allennn..', he said. He stood up with the sharp knife in hand. He was covered in blood. In Mana's blood. Mana was dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. DEAD. I was snapped out of my state of shock when the old man began running up the stairs.
[ Get out.. ]
Panic swelled up inside me as I ran to my room. I didn't get enough time to lock the door as the old man suddenly kicked the door open, the handle smacking me straight on the forehead. I screamed in pain before I fell back on my rear. 'Alleennn..', he said again but with a sickeningly sweet tone to it. He dove towards me, a wrinkly hand wrapping around my throat as he pinned me down to the floor. Kicking and screaming, I fought the older man above me. But it seemed hopeless as the kitchen knife was suddenly plunged in my gut. Inhaling sharply, I screamed again in pain. I suddenly felt his hands grasp my pants before he tore off the article along with my underwear. The panic I once felt tripled as I heard the buckle of his belt become undone.
[ It hurts.. ]
I could feel him. I could feel his thing tearing my insides. It burns. It burns a lot. There's a searing pain clawing up my spine every time he thrust inside. I could feel his grotesque member tearing my rectum apart. His sickeningly, wet tongue licking up my cheek, leaving a streak of disgusting saliva in its path. He's cutting the left side of my eye with the kitchen knife. Marking me. I can feel the sharp blade digging into my flesh as it's being twisted and dragged around. At some point, he began punching me and grabbing me by my hairs before he smashed my head onto the floor. Yet, I didn't scream. I simply cried in silence. Too shocked to even do anything. Most of all, move a single muscle.
[ It's hot.. ]
The house is burning down in the background. My left arm is burning. Our small home is collapsing. Everything is breaking.
[ Mana.. ]
My adoptive father is probably covered in flames. The scorching, hot flames eating at his flesh. He's dead.
[ Help.. ]
I hear police sirens. They sound far yet close at the same time.
[ Scream.. ]
I can't call for help. My throat is dry and throbbing. The old man had tried strangling me before pleasure took him over. I've been screaming for the past hour.
[ Don't cry.. ]
I can't. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. I want him to stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. Sto-
Ah.
I heard a gunshot just now. The old man above me collapsed on top of me.
[ Gross. ]
I feel something acidic crawling up my throat. Vomit. I threw up all over myself and the corpse above me.
[ Police officer.. ]
A middle-aged man shoved the body aside. Surprised to see someone underneath the body.
[ Pity.. ]
I hate that look in his eye. I've seen it all my lifetime. Stop it. ..Oh. It seems he noticed.
[ Apology.. ]
He apologizes. The look is gone. Good.
[ Pain.. ]
There's a searing pain in my left arm and eye. Immediately the bearded man ripped his uniform jacket off himself. He's slapping it over my arm. The flames extinguish.
[ Warmth.. ]
He places the jacket on me. I feel strong arms picking me up. Stop it. Stop. Stop. Stop. St-
[ Gentle whispers.. ]
He's whispering soft reassuring words to me. Something that Mana would do whenever I did something wrong by mistake or to comfort me after a nightmare. It sounded more like the latter.
[ Mana.. ]
He left Mana behind. Stop. Go back. Bring Mana, please. Please. What are you doing?!
[ Cold.. ]
We're outside. The house is surrounded by several police cars, firefighter trucks, and our neighbors. An ambulance not to far. The cool air feels nice against my heated body.
[ Safe.. ]
The medical team take me away from the police officer. Wait. I want to say, 'Thank you'. Ah. I'm inside an ambulance. I always wanted to be inside one.
But not like this.
[ His name.. ]
The police officer from before holds my right hand. I want to hold his hand but I'm to weak to even try. He said something. I close my eyes for a moment and when I open them, he's gone.
'My name is Froi Tiedoll. You're safe now, son.'
My eyes are stinging. Ah. I'm crying yet again.
Thank you, Froi Tiedoll. Thank you for saving me. I owe you one.
.0.
.0.
.0.
.0.
'Mana D. Campbell-Marian died in the fire. You are the only survivor. I'm sorry.'
Mana isn't dead. He's not dead. He's alive. He's with me. He's not dead. Not dead. Not Dead. Not dead. Not DEAD. Not dead. NOT DEAD.
