Author's Note: Please let me know what you think by reviewing so that I may change anything that desperately needs it.

Glossary

Sofu – Personal term for "My grandfather"

Shoko Asahara – Head of the Aum Shinrikyo, now known as Aleph, a cult which grabbed media attention in 1995 for releasing Sarin gas into the subway system in Tokyo; it was the biggest attack on Japanese soil since WWII.

1995

The day was murky when she woke, startled from slumber by a light knock on her door. She was exempt from her chores today, but she almost wished she wasn't as she relaxed into her blankets, curling into herself in a tight fetal position. This wasn't the western style pillow top that she had slept in most her life, this wasn't her old bedroom, and as each minute passed, she felt more and more like this couldn't possibly be her birthday. She opened her eyes and turned over at the sound of another knock on her door.

"Rei-chan?" Her grandfather popped his head in, smiling when he saw her awake.

"Breakfast is in a few minutes, do you want to join us?" She nodded, blearily rubbing her eyes. He smiled, ducking out before popping his head back in, quirking an eyebrow at her.

"And Happy Birthday, honey," He said before closing the door behind him.

Kicking the blankets off her body, she rolled to her feet and walked the length of her room, kneeling before the solitary picture framed upon her desk. She reached a finger out and caressed her mothers' small face, smiling sadly.

"Mama… I miss you," She said softly, feeling the telltale stinging in her eyes as tears threatened to fall. Taking a deep breath, she sat back on her heels, letting her head fall back as she stared upwards, blinking heavily for a few moments before she stood up. Rubbing at her eyes furiously, she hurried out of her room quickly, following the scent of grilled fish to the small sitting room that they took their meals in.

Hino Takahiro was already sitting in seiza at the head of the squat table in the center of the room, dressed in his usual simple kimono and navy hakama as he perused a newspaper. His apprentice, a young teenager he had taken in named Kumada Yūichirō, sat to his left completely absorbed in his breakfast as he nodded absently to Takahiro's tirade. Neither seemed to notice her as she came up behind them, peering curiously at the newspaper in her grandfathers hand. The newspaper held a grainy picture of her father and though she couldn't read the complicated kanji, she could understand from the way her grandfather was waving it about that it wasn't necessarily good news.

"What's the matter, Sofu?" She asked quietly, coming around to sit at her usual seat to his right. He smiled up at her, immediately changing his demeanour as he folded the paper up and used it to tap her on the head.

"Ah, nothing you need to worry about, especially today," He replied cheerfully.

"What do you want to do today, Rei-chan?" Yūichirō interjected, his floppy hair covering his bright eyes as he leaned on his elbows over the table. Takahiro batted at him with the newspaper, jovially indicating he should sit properly. Rolling his eyes, the young man smiled as he leaned back, straightening his posture before quirking an eyebrow at Rei humorously.

"Papa's coming to get me," She said happily, using her red chopsticks to awkwardly snag a couple of omelette morsels from the main serving tray in the center of the table.

"Ah, about that honey, your father called and said he'd be late coming to get you. It'll be before lunch, if that's alright? We'll do something instead, all three of us, okay?" Takahiro responded with a slight grimace as Rei's face crumbled at his words. She nodded listlessly, picking at her egg rolls, no longer interested in her favourite breakfast item.

After they finished breakfast, Yūichirō was able to coerce her into drawing together, managing to entertain her for the morning. She kept an eye on the clock, regardless, counting down the hours until lunch with anticipation. She had barely seen her father in the two months since she had come to live here, having had dinner with him only once since her mothers funeral. She was excited to see him, though she was obviously restraining herself, afraid that her father wouldn't like her now that her mother was gone. She had always been intimidated by his gruff demeanour, but had secretly imitated him, feeling a conflicting swirl of emotions that she couldn't figure out when it came to him.

As it neared the time he would be arriving, she couldn't contain her excitement, loitering in the courtyard while she watched the Shrine entrance intently. She was disappointed when her grandfather called her in for lunch and she sat sullenly through the meal, barely smiling at Yūichirō's antics as he attempted to cheer her up with silly jokes while avoiding her grandfathers sympathetic eyes. She bolted from her chair the moment they were finished, shaking her head to their calls as she ran to her room.

Bursting through the door with tears in her eyes, she ran to her bedroll, tossing herself into the blankets sullenly. She clenched her eyes shut, trying not to cry as she laid there, wondering why her father didn't love her. She seemed to be just a burden to him, no matter how hard she sought for his approval. She felt hot inside, a deep burning in the bottom of her stomach that constricted her throat and left her breathless.

Turning onto her back, she thought back to the previous summer, remembering it had been the only time that her father had been home every night, with her and her mother. She had known in a place deep inside that her mother was sick, though her parents had been so tight lipped about it, and yet it was the happiest time in her memory because they had felt like a true family for the first and only time.

As she laid there, she watched the long stretches of sunglight filtering in through the cream blinds lengthen. Some hours later, she heard the muffled sound of raied voices; she popped her head up excitedly, hurrying to push herself up. She gave up all pretences of dignity as she dashed towards the noise, coming to a stop just before she entered the main receiving room, trying to calm her breath. She peaked her head around the corner, her heart pounding as she saw her father standing rigidly as his father heatedly gestured at him.

"You're a disgrace to my name, Takashi. Dropping her off here... It's as if you could care less about the implications this will have on her later on. You haven't changed at all, still the selfish little boy I raised," He said angrily, jabbing a finger into the indifferent mans chest.

"Rei is my child; she can take care of herself. It's not suitable for her to be carted around with me until I secure a more prominent position but with the recent splintering of LDP members, that's not happening anytime soon. We've got to deal with that Asahara nut, now, afterwards I'll come for her; I have no intention of leaving her here with you forever," He replied calmly, refusing to look his father in the eyes.

"You treat this too lightly! What do you think she's feeling, having just buried her mother and never seeing her father?" The moustachioed Priest demanded. Her father's head snapped round and he glared at the older man, a look of distaste curling his lip.

"I refuse to talk about this; where's Rei?" Takashi spit out. Rei flinched at the venom in hi tone, backing up from the wall hesitantly. She spun on her heel, the scuffle of her shoes drawing attention to her as she exited, her grandfather immediately dropping his hands and pivoting towards her direction.

"Rei?" She heard him call out but she didn't stop nor glance back as she tore down the hall. She could hear their footsteps in pursuit, the soft sound of her grandfathers shoes mingling with the heavy thud of her father's stride as they both followed her. Quickening her own step, she hurried past her door, making a sharp left at the end of the building and looping back around it, slipping into the room they had just occupied.

In a small adjacent room there was a row of cabinets and a sink, meant for purifying your mouth and hands. Rei quickly opened the cabinet door, slipping under the sink carefully. She was small enough to have a lot of room, but she tucked up her legs under her chin, holding herself tightly. She was startled a bit later when the sound of her fathers voice cut through the silence and tranquility of the room.

"I don't have time to play hide and seek; I was going to take Rei with me to a family party the Minister is throwing, but she obviously doesn't want to cooperate," His voice seemed to come closer until it seemed to be right in front of her hiding spot. She heard the slight moan of the pipes as the sink above her was turned on.

"You give up so easily; how would Rei feel if she knew you'd left her to go to a party, of all things?" Came her grandfathers voice.

"What she doesn't know can't hurt her," He replied.

"I'm disappointed in you, Takashi. You'd think you would have more understanding of what Rei is going through, considering her moth-"To this, her father cut him off, his tone no longer stoic and indifferent.

"And what do you think I'm going through? I was working non-stop on helping the government react appropriately to the Kobe earthquake… I couldn't help it! She refused to let me take her to America for a transplant… Don't assume to know what was going on!" He burst out, shutting the water off to the sink roughly.

Rei blinked back tears, biting her lip and holding it in harshly so as to not alert the two men. She heard her father storm out of the room, with her grandfather trailing behind him she was sure, but she stayed where she was, burying her face in her arms as she allowed herself to cry in earnest.

It wasn't until much later that her grandfather started to become truly worried about his absentee grand-daughter. When he opened the cupboard beneath the sink, he frowned at seeing her curled up in a tight ball, a grimace twisting her face as she slept. Gently, he reached in, grabbing an arm and pulling the girl out without knocking her against the lead pipe coming down from the center. She mumbled, turning her face into his chest as he held her tightly, straightening up with a slight sigh. Rocking her gently, he turned to take her back to her room, shaking his head at his selfish son. At least he was here to take care of her, he reasoned as he looked down at the beautiful, albeit tragically sad face. He vowed then to do everything he could to make her feel wanted and loved, despite the circumstances.