Numiko opened the door to her house, and quickly ushered Sachi inside
looking around to make sure no one was following them. She'd had a bad
feeling since they'd run off fro their tree, but she decided not to worry
about it and she shook it off for now.
"Numiko?" Sachi asked, somewhat calmer now.
"Yeah, Sachi?"
"Thank you," she said, smiling now.
"Don't worry about it," Numiko responded comfortingly. She then got an idea that she knew would put life back into her best friends eyes. "Why don't you go take a shower, Sachi? Then we can stay up all night and watch Trigun."
That put the beginnings of a glitter into Sachi's eyes, and Numiko knew she'd said the right thing. She knew all about Sachi's obsession with anime, but especially with Trigun and the cute blonde boy that was the star.
They both loved it, but because Sachi wasn't allowed to own any, Numiko got as much as she could for when the two girls were together, no matter how rarely that was.
In the time it took Sachi to shower, which was about ten minutes, Numiko had alerted her parents to Sachi's arrival and set up the DVD Player so they could watch Trigun. They sat down and began with the first episode, laughing at Vash's stupidity and innocence.
It was during the fifth episode that there was a knock on the door and Numiko's fear came flooding back full-force.
She looked over at her friend and saw the newly lit flame drain from her eyes, signaling that she was worried as well.
"Is it...?" she asked, not wanting it to be true. Numiko stood and, after signaling for Sachi to remain quiet, she walked over to the door. She had to stand on her tiptoes to see through the peephole, but what she saw wasn't worth the effort she was putting into it. She saw THEM standing there. She turned to Sachi again and nodded slightly.
Her only response was a tear rolling down her best friends cheek and another round of thuds on the door. Sachi began to back away until she hit the wall and she stopped. She looked up to see her best friend mouth the words, 'My room,' and she nodded, hurrying off towards her specified destination.
With her out of the way, Numiko opened the door to glance at the offending parents innocently as they were about to knock for the third time.
"Oh, hello Mr. and Mrs. ..... can I help you?" she asked nicely.
"Yes, I believe you can Numiko," the father answered snappily, "where is our daughter?"
"Ummm... Sachi?" she asked, feigning stupidity.
"Yes, our only child, Sachi," her mother answered.
Numiko shook her head and spoke, "No, I don't know where she is, sorry." She tried to shut the door, but it was blocked by a foot and reshoved it open.
"We don't believe you, show her to us!" Sachi's father shouted.
Sachi heard the now raised voice of her father, and the tears began to flow faster as she worried for her friend's safety. She looked at her hands and realized that she had never put down the DVD she had grabbed as she was changing the disc.
She decided to study it, and she stroked Vash's face on the cover. Then she thought she saw the sweet, smiling face blink at her, and she dropped the case in shock.
Sachi bent to pick it up again, and she smiled back at the tall blonde man staring at her. 'How I wish I was there right now with you Vash, and not here scared to death of my parents,' she thought to herself sighing.
Suddenly, Sachi heard a voice echo around the room. "Be careful what you wish for Child, be careful..." She looked around and realized that the room was spinning. Sachi felt dizzy and the next thing she knew she was on the ground feeling sick to her stomach. Sachi moaned at the sudden sickness, because she didn't know where it was from. The next thing she knew, though, was a black cloak of darkness covering her and she fell into unconsciousness. Her body then began to fade from the world.
The voice spoke again, knowing that when the words were needed they would be remembered by the teenager now departing from the only world she knew. "Child, it's time you found the strength to stand on your own. You are the only one who can turn back the onslaught coming. Make your choices wisely, Child, for your destiny awaits you." With those words the voice shrank away, and Sachi's body completely disappeared from the room, and the Earth.
In the other end of the house, Sachi's parents had forced their way into the house. They were demanding to see their daughter and at about that time Numiko's parents showed up. Now they were yelling at each other, both furious at the current situation.
"How could you expect us to allow her return with you?" Numiko's mom asked, borderline on fury.
"I'd expect it because she's my daughter!" Sachi's mom shouted.
"You do nothing except hurt her! She deserves much better than you two! You're the worst excuse for parents on the face of the Earth!" Numiko's father shouted in his anger.
"Why don't you ask her then? She doesn't complain!" Sachi's dad yelled.
"Of course not! You two scare her so bad she wouldn't dream of saying anything against you!" Numiko hollered, deciding to put her two cents in. In recognition she felt the back of Sachi's father's hand connect with her face. She cried out and stumbled back into her own father's arms. The force made her cheek sting, and she rubbed it.
"How dare you..." Sachi's father started, but was cut off by the man comfortingly holding his daughter in his arms.
"No! How dare you!! You slapped my daughter!?" he raged, beyond mad and reaching furious. "You hurt your own daughter so much, and why!? Who knows!! She comes here looking for love and comfort! She wants, no, she needs shelter and hope!! We only do the best we can for her! But then you come barging into my home and have the gall to not only desire to hurt your own daughter, but to physically hurt mine!! Where do you come off doing that!?!"
"She deserved it! She has no right to say that our daughter is afraid of us!!" Sachi's dad cried, glaring at Numiko.
"You know...?" Numiko started, moving out of her father's hands and walking back towards Sachi's parents.
"Numiko, come back here," her father demanded, beginning to worry for her.
"I'm fine Dad. I know what I'm doing," she told him, coming to a stop in front of Sachi's father. She spoke to him again, "If Sachi wasn't so afraid of you hurting her she would have told you long ago. She must be the perfect scapegoat, though, if you can so eagerly abuse her as you do. I can say it now, the one thing I've wanted to say for a long time. We should sue you for your daughter!"
Both mothers gasped in shock, neither believing that what the girl had said was true. "You can't do that," Sachi's mother said. "She's coming with us!"
"NO!!" Numiko screamed.
"Numiko," her mother started sadly, "we have no choice. She is right, legally we can't keep her here."
Numiko turned to her mother and, with tears in her eyes, she began to complain, "But Mom... you know what will happen if we let her go with them!"
"I know honey, and I'm sorry, but we have no choice," her mom explained calmly.
Numiko decided to turn to her dad for help, but he proved to be no help at all. With tears in his eyes he had to agree with his wife. "I'm so sorry, Numiko, but your mother is right. Please go tell Sachi that her parents are here to take her home," he sighed regretfully, knowing his daughter wouldn't be pleased at this. Actually, neither was he, and he had decided to call the police as soon as they left, but for now he had to please Sachi's parents.
Numiko couldn't believe that her parents were giving up so easily, but she wasn't going to. She shook her head stubbornly, "No," she whispered, "no way is she going with them."
"Numiko," her father demanded, "go tell Sachi she has to go!" He felt bad for having to yell at her, but it was the only way to get his daughter to listen.
Numiko was angry with her father, but she left for her room anyways. Her parents didn't want to allow the abused teen to leave either, but they knew that they were the ones who could be sued for keeping Sachi with them against her parent's wishes.
The teen walked into her room, only to find it empty. She screamed and began to panic, worrying about where Sachi could be.
"Numiko?" Sachi asked, somewhat calmer now.
"Yeah, Sachi?"
"Thank you," she said, smiling now.
"Don't worry about it," Numiko responded comfortingly. She then got an idea that she knew would put life back into her best friends eyes. "Why don't you go take a shower, Sachi? Then we can stay up all night and watch Trigun."
That put the beginnings of a glitter into Sachi's eyes, and Numiko knew she'd said the right thing. She knew all about Sachi's obsession with anime, but especially with Trigun and the cute blonde boy that was the star.
They both loved it, but because Sachi wasn't allowed to own any, Numiko got as much as she could for when the two girls were together, no matter how rarely that was.
In the time it took Sachi to shower, which was about ten minutes, Numiko had alerted her parents to Sachi's arrival and set up the DVD Player so they could watch Trigun. They sat down and began with the first episode, laughing at Vash's stupidity and innocence.
It was during the fifth episode that there was a knock on the door and Numiko's fear came flooding back full-force.
She looked over at her friend and saw the newly lit flame drain from her eyes, signaling that she was worried as well.
"Is it...?" she asked, not wanting it to be true. Numiko stood and, after signaling for Sachi to remain quiet, she walked over to the door. She had to stand on her tiptoes to see through the peephole, but what she saw wasn't worth the effort she was putting into it. She saw THEM standing there. She turned to Sachi again and nodded slightly.
Her only response was a tear rolling down her best friends cheek and another round of thuds on the door. Sachi began to back away until she hit the wall and she stopped. She looked up to see her best friend mouth the words, 'My room,' and she nodded, hurrying off towards her specified destination.
With her out of the way, Numiko opened the door to glance at the offending parents innocently as they were about to knock for the third time.
"Oh, hello Mr. and Mrs. ..... can I help you?" she asked nicely.
"Yes, I believe you can Numiko," the father answered snappily, "where is our daughter?"
"Ummm... Sachi?" she asked, feigning stupidity.
"Yes, our only child, Sachi," her mother answered.
Numiko shook her head and spoke, "No, I don't know where she is, sorry." She tried to shut the door, but it was blocked by a foot and reshoved it open.
"We don't believe you, show her to us!" Sachi's father shouted.
Sachi heard the now raised voice of her father, and the tears began to flow faster as she worried for her friend's safety. She looked at her hands and realized that she had never put down the DVD she had grabbed as she was changing the disc.
She decided to study it, and she stroked Vash's face on the cover. Then she thought she saw the sweet, smiling face blink at her, and she dropped the case in shock.
Sachi bent to pick it up again, and she smiled back at the tall blonde man staring at her. 'How I wish I was there right now with you Vash, and not here scared to death of my parents,' she thought to herself sighing.
Suddenly, Sachi heard a voice echo around the room. "Be careful what you wish for Child, be careful..." She looked around and realized that the room was spinning. Sachi felt dizzy and the next thing she knew she was on the ground feeling sick to her stomach. Sachi moaned at the sudden sickness, because she didn't know where it was from. The next thing she knew, though, was a black cloak of darkness covering her and she fell into unconsciousness. Her body then began to fade from the world.
The voice spoke again, knowing that when the words were needed they would be remembered by the teenager now departing from the only world she knew. "Child, it's time you found the strength to stand on your own. You are the only one who can turn back the onslaught coming. Make your choices wisely, Child, for your destiny awaits you." With those words the voice shrank away, and Sachi's body completely disappeared from the room, and the Earth.
In the other end of the house, Sachi's parents had forced their way into the house. They were demanding to see their daughter and at about that time Numiko's parents showed up. Now they were yelling at each other, both furious at the current situation.
"How could you expect us to allow her return with you?" Numiko's mom asked, borderline on fury.
"I'd expect it because she's my daughter!" Sachi's mom shouted.
"You do nothing except hurt her! She deserves much better than you two! You're the worst excuse for parents on the face of the Earth!" Numiko's father shouted in his anger.
"Why don't you ask her then? She doesn't complain!" Sachi's dad yelled.
"Of course not! You two scare her so bad she wouldn't dream of saying anything against you!" Numiko hollered, deciding to put her two cents in. In recognition she felt the back of Sachi's father's hand connect with her face. She cried out and stumbled back into her own father's arms. The force made her cheek sting, and she rubbed it.
"How dare you..." Sachi's father started, but was cut off by the man comfortingly holding his daughter in his arms.
"No! How dare you!! You slapped my daughter!?" he raged, beyond mad and reaching furious. "You hurt your own daughter so much, and why!? Who knows!! She comes here looking for love and comfort! She wants, no, she needs shelter and hope!! We only do the best we can for her! But then you come barging into my home and have the gall to not only desire to hurt your own daughter, but to physically hurt mine!! Where do you come off doing that!?!"
"She deserved it! She has no right to say that our daughter is afraid of us!!" Sachi's dad cried, glaring at Numiko.
"You know...?" Numiko started, moving out of her father's hands and walking back towards Sachi's parents.
"Numiko, come back here," her father demanded, beginning to worry for her.
"I'm fine Dad. I know what I'm doing," she told him, coming to a stop in front of Sachi's father. She spoke to him again, "If Sachi wasn't so afraid of you hurting her she would have told you long ago. She must be the perfect scapegoat, though, if you can so eagerly abuse her as you do. I can say it now, the one thing I've wanted to say for a long time. We should sue you for your daughter!"
Both mothers gasped in shock, neither believing that what the girl had said was true. "You can't do that," Sachi's mother said. "She's coming with us!"
"NO!!" Numiko screamed.
"Numiko," her mother started sadly, "we have no choice. She is right, legally we can't keep her here."
Numiko turned to her mother and, with tears in her eyes, she began to complain, "But Mom... you know what will happen if we let her go with them!"
"I know honey, and I'm sorry, but we have no choice," her mom explained calmly.
Numiko decided to turn to her dad for help, but he proved to be no help at all. With tears in his eyes he had to agree with his wife. "I'm so sorry, Numiko, but your mother is right. Please go tell Sachi that her parents are here to take her home," he sighed regretfully, knowing his daughter wouldn't be pleased at this. Actually, neither was he, and he had decided to call the police as soon as they left, but for now he had to please Sachi's parents.
Numiko couldn't believe that her parents were giving up so easily, but she wasn't going to. She shook her head stubbornly, "No," she whispered, "no way is she going with them."
"Numiko," her father demanded, "go tell Sachi she has to go!" He felt bad for having to yell at her, but it was the only way to get his daughter to listen.
Numiko was angry with her father, but she left for her room anyways. Her parents didn't want to allow the abused teen to leave either, but they knew that they were the ones who could be sued for keeping Sachi with them against her parent's wishes.
The teen walked into her room, only to find it empty. She screamed and began to panic, worrying about where Sachi could be.