Nightmare of a Paper Crane
Author's Note: Alright! Second Chapter! In this chapter, I'll be introducing my third OC, Yuuki Ouma. Yuuki was actually born in Japan and is the only OC to not have a fake/changed name. Yep, all the others either had their name changed or is using a fake name. Kurohane Akama changed her name completely, but was originally Japanese. Raitotei Kasai changed his name for… reasons unknown… and is from Spain. His true name is… yet to be revealed. In case it was a little confusing in the previous chapter, I'll explain this to you: Yoshiya Kiryu has not yet made an actual appearance yet. Raitotei looks exactly like Joshua. So that was Raitotei, not Josh. Josh will appear briefly in this chapter, I assure you. My final OC shall be introduced next chapter while making a very brief appearance in this one. She's from Britain so she'll have a strong British accent. On another note… I made profiles for my characters, talking about what they like, what they hate, their past lives, their quirks and all and I'll be constantly adding new things to it as I write my fanfic. Maybe, in the near future, I'll let you see their profiles… But not now as they are only flat characters now… At least I was creative enough to type up Yuuki's appearance! Anyways, that's enough of my rambling! On with the story!
At Rambunctious Guest: Nope. Not Crayon Box Warriors, it's the Paper Crane Warriors!
Disclaimer: TWEWY has been something I owned as a game to play, not as an original idea.
Chapter 2: Clear as Day
The Blue Paper Crane tossed and turned in the vicious storm of conflicting winds, desperately trying to reach the clear, blue sky.
Sightless, glass-like eyes stared into the depths of a pool of water. Ripples spread every now and then from the middle, running towards the edges and back, despite having no source for such a wave. The mirror-like pool reflected the sun's light as it beat down upon the figure next to the window. The shadow hadn't moved since his companion left, but raised his head to look at the cloudless sky now. He could see. He didn't need sight to see. Cross-legged, he turned his attention back to the water. His long fingers slid over the edge of the golden basin of which contained the crystal clear pool and strands of his white, milky hair fell from behind his ears, getting in the way of his eyes. But it didn't matter. He didn't need his eyes to see so it didn't matter.
A scene appeared as the ripples continued crawling along the surface of the water, eventually stopping and showing a classroom. The water reflected an orange haired boy frozen in his seat with shock. His eyes were wide and flickers of astonishment flashed through his determinedly blank expression.
"Heheh… Looks like it came to more of a shock to him than he expected…" The same voice drifted from the shadows, sounding more mature than it had at Dawn. The glassy eyes placed their silent gaze on the girl that walked from the shadows, her black hair reaching her waist and her mismatched eyes catching the light of the sun. She no longer looked eleven, but, rather, sixteen, her features more mature and pretty, but she was still petit and awfully thin. "Right, Yuuki?" she asked, looking towards the boy on the floor.
Yuuki hesitated before replying. "I agree, Milady…." He then answered, standing up in his sleeveless dark brown hoodie he wore over a plain white t-shirt and long jeans that were burdened with multiple chains. His straight, silky, white hair reached just below his shoulders. Despite his fragile-looking appearance, the somewhat bulky teen towered over the girl. His eyes were filled with respect for the seemingly younger girl.
"Milady? My Lady?" Another female voice questioned from the gloom, a thick British accent in her strangely young and tuanting voice, "What? Are you cosplaying some Victorian butler answering his Mistress?"
The child was ignored by the much older-looking boy while the black-haired girl just sighed.
"Hee… Perhaps Yuuki is…" Kurohane commented an innocent smile on her innocent face as she twirled on the spot to beam cheerfully at the unseen child, clasping her hands together behind her back and lowering her upper body by a fraction. Then she hopped forwards and curled into the shadows, only a spot of blue and a spot of hazel-gold visible of her form.
The tall boy turned his head slowly, his body following shortly after to gaze at the sky once more with his unseeing eyes. His fingers pressed their tips against the cold, smooth glass of the closed window as he moved closer, as if to reach the sky. With a quiet creek, the windows opened slowly and carefully and a gust of wind blew inside, making the temperature drop and the dying torches vanish into oblivion. A stray thread of silver hair was brushed back as the boy stood, one foot on the window sill, allowing the invisible forces to push against him and blow his hair messy. Then, with a sigh, he hoisted himself up so that he was standing on the window sill, hands in pockets.
"Bye, Yuuki. I wish you luck. Hee…" the playful voice of Kurohane reached Yuuki's ears and he nodded, taking a light jump from the window into the abyss below.
As the Blue Paper Crane steadied itself, a particularly powerful gust blew it upwards towards the sun and it sailed swiftly on the winds, through the sea that was not a sea.
…
Breathe.
Neku reminded himself to breathe. He took a deep breath, trying to quench those boiling emotions.
Why? Why come back now? Why come back like this? Why, Joshua? Why be such an annoying moron? Why didn't you show up when I wanted you to? I waited for you every day, you know? Do you know? Of course you know! You're the freaking Composer for God's sake!
Bombarded by an avalanche of mixed feelings, Neku tried to keep a straight face. Anger, sorrow, resentment, it all came pouring through the net of woven desires. To be able to Joshua again was what Neku had wanted. To know that he was okay and that Shibuya was alright and that he hadn't been overthrown and he was still concerned about them and… and… That was what he'd always wanted. So… why? Why were these negative emotions taking over? Why were these unanswered questions so eager to be hurled at his former partner? He should feel happy that Yoshiya Kiryu had finally shown himself, but he wasn't. He didn't want to see that smug Composer.
I don't want to see Joshua.
That thought surprised the teen and, for a moment, his breath caught in his throat as his ever weakening resistance against the downpour of negativity turned into a catalyst of his loathing of the boy at the front of the class. He barely noticed a few girls start a quiet and excited chatter about how handsome and cute this new transfer student was. How could this prissy boy be anything but bad news? He was bad news. He should… he should just leave them alone and… and never try and mess up their lives again. It was all his fault and Neku was happier without him. Neku felt a dagger of despair cut him as he realized that he still didn't feel with his heart. His mind told him that because he'd changed, he viewed Joshua as a friend, but his heart told him that his feelings of friendship were fake, a bluff made by his mind to trick him into happiness. He didn't know which was real and which was just a spurious fact. The paper felt icy against his leg.
"Now… Kasai-kun, to find you a seat… Why don't you sit…"
Glancing at the unoccupied seat next to him and adjacent to the windows, Neku felt a strike of panic. Hoping with all his heart, Neku made a silent prayer for Joshua to not sit next to him.
"Over there, next to Sakuraba-kun."
Dear lord, why?
"Yes, ma'am," the transfer student replied, taking deliberately slow steps towards Neku, his smirk widening. As the boy approached, Neku stared at his arms, swallowing all his emotions and questions. When did he become so emotionally weak? There was the scraping of a chair against the floor as the new student sat. And, to his surprise, no sarcastic comment was thrown in his direction. Instead, the astonished teen realized, Joshua sat straight in his seat, one hand supporting his chin as he watched the teacher with unwavering concentration.
"Now, Sakuraba-kun, I want you to show Kasai-kun around the school during lunch break."
Oh Holy Angels, no…
"Understood?"
"… Yes ma'am…" Neku replied after hesitating for a moment, wiping his face of the shock. Then came the comment he had been waiting for, just not like he had thought it would come like.
"Hee… Te kudasai*, escort," the smug boy whispered at Neku, eyes boring into his. Neku mentally groaned and gave Josh a glare before looking back at the teacher once more.
…
As the bell rang, signalling the start of lunch break, the first thought that came to Neku was to find Shiki and get as far away from Joshua as possible. He knew he didn't want to stay near the arrogant brat, not even one second longer. He got up and, just when he was about to leave, a hand caught his shoulder. It was, of course, Joshua.
"Where do you think you're going, Mr. Escort?" the little snob asked, giving Neku one of his signature confident smiles and pulling his hand back to twirl his hair, "It's your job to take care of me, or have you forgotten, hmm?"
Neku felt like punching Josh. He forced himself to take a deep breath before trying to answer calmly. However, it didn't come out that way. His voice was a rasping whisper that barely held back rage. "Joshua," he said the name, letting it linger in the air before continuing, "I don't know what you're doing or why you're here, but can't you show yourself the school? You're the damn Composer of Shibuya so you should know your way around a little school like this. Why do you come back now?" A voice in his head told him to calm down, but a louder one goaded him on, telling him to hate, hold a grudge, not forgive. He took a deep breath and was about to continue, but the silver-haired twerp interrupted.
"I don't know about this 'Joshua' you speak of and I'm definitely not a musician either. How can you expect someone who is a first timer in Shibuya to know his way round the school, silly Sakuraba-kun…? Hee…" the boy crooned. Neku opened his mouth to object, but was stopped as the silveret held up a hand for him to stay silent, "En serio. ¿Son todos los japoneses como este?** Hee… Remember, my name is Raitotei Kasai, not Joshua, Sakuraba-kun." A hand reached to the taller boy's forehead and gave him a flick before retreating into the attacker's pockets.
Ouch. Neku wavered. His emotional world shook slightly. That was… Spanish? Joshua didn't speak Spanish, did he? Josh - no, this kid – was he really not who Neku thought he was. The same attitude, the same smirk, the same voice, the same appearance and the same girly giggling. It was Joshua, right? How could someone be so similar? Yet, a thought was telling him it wasn't the kid he hated, the kid whom he had waited for. Deciding to play along and observe the kid, Neku frowned and sighed.
"I-I'm sorry…" he muttered. Apologizing wasn't something Neku did often nor was he used to it, but he decided this was going to be part of the act, "I-I guess I got you confused with another… uh… friend…" he added, pretending to be somewhat embarrassed, "You two look a lot alike…"
"Apology accepted, Sakuraba-kun. Just make sure you give your eyes a good rub so you don't get me mixed up with someone else again… Hee hee…" Raitotei warned, the smirk perpetually on his pretty face, "Now, before we get this tour started, let's have you make up by introducing yourself properly, hmm?"
"…" Neku felt weird and uneasy, having to introduce himself to this kid that either was or looked extremely alike to Yoshiya Kiryu, his killer and friend.
"What's wrong, Sakuraba-kun? Cat got your tongue?"
Neku's frown deepened. "… Neku. Neku Sakuraba."
"Well then, nice to meet you, Neku… I guess I can skip the intros as I've already introduced myself once and I don't like to repeat myself… Hee hee…" Raitotei said, "I'll just call you Neku then, and you can call me Kye," his smirk wavered for a moment, "Hmm? You seem in an awfully bad mood, eh? Hee… Why don't we turn that frown upside-down then, Neku?"
Neku closed his eyes for one moment before sighing and doing his best to clear his frown. "Come on. I'll show you around the school…" His voice came out tired and worn. Then Neku lead the annoying twerp out of the classroom.
…
Lunch was always fun. It was a long break with time to hang out with Shiki and Eri. Neku loved lunch break. But he didn't today. Not with the irritating spoiled brat following him around today. The tour was over, but the pipsqueak continued to follow him.
"Hey! Neku! Over here!" A voice called, making Neku look over. His spirits soared and a smile came to his lips as he saw Shiki and Eri waving at him from inside their classroom. The cold feeling left him. Kye gave Neku an odd look, as if wondering why Neku hadn't yet smiled at him, before his smug smirk returned and he followed Neku towards the girls.
…
The room was silent. No Music reached his ears as the real Yoshiya Kiryu inspected his surroundings. It shouldn't be so silent or dark. Even if this was the seemingly eternally dark A-East Concert Stage, the pitch blackness was quite unnerving, even for one like Joshua himself, as the doors were open and at least some light should be there. He strained to hear the Music of Shibuya as he tried to look for the disturbance that had brought him here, the awful screeching sound of metal against glass that had disturbed him so much, he had come to inspect the place personally. The double-doors slammed closed, throwing him into a void. Someone, or something, had approached him without him realizing it and he could no longer tell if his own eyes were open or closed. Tensing up, the teen, which was Composer of Shibuya, braced himself to be thrown into a fight at any moment. There was no playful smirk on his face or confidence in his eyes, just a glazed field of lavender, cautiously waiting for something to happen.
… Are you Lonely?
He twitched, beginning to be able to hear his own heartbeat echo in the silence. The question rang in his mind, surprising himself. Yoshiya Kiryu was actually unnerved.
…
"J-Joshua!?" Shiki's surprised voice wiped the smile off Neku's face as the cold feeling began creeping up on him again.
"So this is the great and mighty Joshua I've been hearing about, huh?" Eri asked, unsure if she should be happy, shocked or hostile.
"Unfortunately, I and this Joshua you speak of are two different people," Kye explained, sighing and shaking his head. Shiki looked at Neku, her eyes unsure and questioning. Neku just nodded once, making Shiki focus once more upon the boy who looked awfully like the Shibuya Composer. "My name is Raitotei Kasai."
"He's also called Kye," Neku added, frowning slightly.
"S-so you're not Joshua?" Shiki asked once more. Eri just gave a confused look.
"No, I am not," Kye confirmed, a note of annoyance edging his voice.
"You look… a lot like Joshua," Shiki then said, still unsure. This made Raitotei smirk once more.
"So I've heard," he said, fiddling with his hair. He looked at Neku. "Sakuraba-kun, why don't you introduce these two lovely girls, hmm?"
Neku positively flinched at what Kye resumed calling him. He wasn't used to hearing this in Joshua's voice. He flashed Kye a suspicious look before sighing and saying, "Kye, this is Shiki and Eri… Shiki, Eri, this is Kye."
"Hee… Oh dear, Neku… I don't think I'm that important of a person to you to be introduced twice to your friends…" Kye teased smugly, holding out a hand for the girls to shake.
"Oh, okay, well, yeah, I'm Shiki," the girl with glasses took Kye's hand uncertainly and gave a small shake before retreating. Her eyes still watched Kye with a troubled look as if she were remembering this expression on the face of Neku's killer as Joshua pulled the trigger. Bad memories. Shiki gave a small shake of the head and wished she were holding Mr. Mew right now.
Eri seemed to get out of her uncertainty faster, maybe because she hadn't met Joshua personally, and shook Kye's hand. "That means I must be Eri!" she said playfully before pulling her hand back. Kye's hand fell to his side, too.
"Well, very nice to meet the pair of you. Now, Neku, why don't we have lunch? I'm positively starving…" Kye's sarcastic, Joshua-like voice purred, making Neku feel more uncomfortable than ever. He kind of wished he had never allowed Josh – Kye, whatever – to meet Shiki and Eri. It felt as if he was exposing them to danger… Which he most likely was…
Suddenly, there was a ringing sound.
"Oops… Excuse me…" Kye muttered, taking out his phone and answering. He walked off to a personless part of the hall, leaving Neku and the others behind. Neku felt as if a stone had been lifted off his heart.
If this person really wasn't Joshua, who was he and why did he look so alike to Josh?
…
"Oh. So you're here, huh, Yuuki? Where? Right outside the school? That means two more until our plan can start… Great. Tee hee…"
Author's Notes: Finally done with the second chapter! Phew… Guess I'm still in with the one update per day thing! Right, I still am in a bit of a rush though... Still appreciating comments and critique!
* - Japanese for 'I'm counting on you' more literally, 'Please.'
** - Spanish for 'Seriously. Are all Japanese like this?'
Kun is a prefix for a guy's, of whom you are only somewhat familiar with and whom is around the same age as you, name.
