Anyways, the reason it took me so long was because I got stupid writers block and couldn't think of a way to end the chapter.
Oh, and by the way, I've changed Ren's name to Akari. And I will be changing the name of the story to Deception. 'Kay? Just letting y'all know.
Enjoy the chapter now.
School Sucks(Back at the present)
Akari shifted wearily as the first soft rays of light fell on her sleeping face. Tsugai smiled as he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. His eyes softened as he watched her brush his hand away as if she were shooing a fly. He stood and went into the small kitchen that he had built when they had stumbled upon this old house. It was a nice place to meet, since no one came here in fear of the demons on the other side of the barrier, of which he could see just outside of the small window facing the lake. He began cooking breakfast for him and Akari.
A delicious scent wafted in from the kitchen and taunted Akari. Her stomach growled hungrily as she slowly opened her eyes. She blinked a few times to get the sleep from her bright red eyes.
She groaned as she sat up in the bed: Akari was not a morning person.
As she looked absent-mindedly around the room she realized something, her clothes were nowhere to be seen; and neither was Tsugai.
That, of course, led her to one conclusion.
"Tsugai!"
She heard a muffled laugh coming from the kitchen. So, growling, she wrapped a blanket around herself and marched into the small room with as much dignity as she could muster.
The total of which added up to: A Big. Fat. 0.
"Tsugaaai," she whined, "what did you do to my clothes?"
Tsugai thought for a minute. "I can't remember."
Akari glared at him before turning around and stomping back into the bedroom.
"You're going to pick up this mess!" she yelled as she tore through drawers and other various hiding places.
Tsugai had stopped cooking and was leaning in the doorway, thoroughly enjoying the show.
"AH-HAH!" Akari exclaimed as she caught sight of her clothes sitting on a particularly high shelf. She tried to reach them but was just short of getting them.
Akari's breath caught as Tsugai's hand ran up her own to retrieve the clothing. He handed them to her and then placed a chaste kiss on her lips.
Akari stood there, speechless, as she stared up into his dark gold eyes.
"Here you are, My Lady." He whispered.
Akari was so totally engrossed in Tsugai's presence that she didn't even realize that he had said anything.
"I should get back to breakfast." Tsugai gave her one last kiss on the forehead before he turned and went back into the small kitchen.
Akari let out a slow breath. She couldn't believe that he could still do that to her. They had been going out for, what, three years now?
Akari quickly dressed and just happened to glance at the clock sitting on the bed stand.
It was 8:15.
Shit.
"Tsugai, get your pretty butt out here and bring me my breakfast to go! We're going to be late for first period!"
Tsugai brought her a plate of hot noodles with a fried egg on top.
"Mmmm, yummy. Thanks Too."
Tsugai rolled his eyes at the nickname. "I hate that name…"
When they reached the school's entrance, the tardy bell rang. They were both glad that they had different classes; it would look pretty suspicious if they both showed up at the exact same time.
Akari's first class was creative writing.
'Ah, if ever there was a hell…' she thought as she turned the corner.
It's not that Akari disliked creative writing; in fact it was quite the opposite. What she hated was the devil incarnate itself: Aku.
Aku had taken upon herself the "task" of punishing her for her "dirty blood," as she put it.
Akari tried to slip through the door unnoticed, and would have succeeded, but Aku just couldn't even begin to think of such things.
"Sensei! Akari-chan is late!" she said innocently.
Sensei turned and looked down his glasses at her. "That's the third time in two weeks. A week's detention Miss."
Now, Akari knew that if she were any other person right now, Sensei would have just given her a warning. But because of her lineage, she was now faced with a week of boring lectures about the importance of being on time.
Akari just nodded and sat down. She had experienced this before: If she so much as made a peep of resistance, it would be a referral, which inevitably led to a week's suspension.
Akari tried to focus on what the teacher was saying, but found herself drawn to what Aku and her thugs were doing.
Aku kept pointing at her and giggling. Her thugs would then cover their mouths to keep from bursting into laughter. It was getting rather annoying.
"AKARI!" the teacher shouted from the front of the room.
Akari sunk down into her chair, completely embarrassed.
"Now that I have your attention, would you honor us with your presence at the board. And by the way, that's another two weeks detention."
Akari's eyes filled with tears, but she blinked them back.
"I want you to explain to the class what the Pythagorean theory is, and show at least two examples."
Akari stood slowly and walked to the board. The tears in her eyes were burning, fighting against her struggle to hold them in. She knew that if she spoke now, they would escape. But she had to do something; if she just stood there like an idiot, the teacher would give her even more detentions.
Suddenly, Tsugai burst through the door.
"I need Akari-sama, sir." He said as he held out a small piece of paper.
The teacher read it and glared at Akari. "Go."
Akari quickly gathered her things and left with Tsugai. As soon as the door was closed and they were out in the empty hallway alone, Tsugai grabbed her arm and led her toward the exit.
Akari wasn't surprised at this. Tsugai often took her from the school when he sensed she was in discomfort. He had long ago perfected the art of the principal's signature.
The school was located at the edge of the city, so it was easy to escape to the woods without anyone seeing them. Tsugai quickly maneuvered them through the thick vegetation of the many trees and bushes.
He stopped when he had reached their destination.
It was a small koi pond that they had built together just the summer before. The fish they had placed in it were not quite full-grown yet, but they were still beautiful. No one knew of this place.
"You can tell me-" Tsugai started, but he stopped when he saw the tears running down Akari's face.
She hugged him close as she started to sob into his shoulder.
"Why am I alive? No one cares for me; no one loves me. I'm better off dead."
Tsugai placed his hand behind her head and breathed in her familiar scent. He knew what she had gone through; heck, he had been beside her since she was just a baby.
But more importantly, he was "tainted."
Just a half demon bastard who no one took seriously.
He clenched his fists as the thought of Hiro came into his head.
"Akari, I don't know why you insist on running to this filth when you could run to me. I know what you're going through."
Hiro knew nothing of what Akari had been through. He hadn't experienced the teasing, and sometimes violence, that half demons were faced with in Heaven.
"Look! It's the filth rat! Everyone run away or you'll get kudies!"
Those memories.
"You're nothing in this world, and you never will be."
Why won't they die?
"We should have killed your mother while she was with child, then we would be rid of you!"
Why?
"Tooya, no matter what they say, remember that I will always love you."
Mother.
"Be strong, for your father, and for me."
I tried.
"Leave him alone!"
I tried so hard.
"Take me instead, just please, don't hurt my baby!"
But I failed.
"She will pay for bringing that monster into this pure world."
I'm sorry.
"Take care of the royal daughter, Tooya."
Go away! Just go away!
"Mommy? Mommy? Mommy, where are they taking you?"
Mom, please, come back.
"From now on, your name is Tsugai. Forget that other retched name of yours."
Make it stop!
"Hi, I'm Akari! What's your name?"
"Please, make it stop!"
Tsugai snapped out of his thoughts and realized he had started to cry. Akari trembled in his arms as she sobbed into his shoulder. The sudden sound had silenced everything around them.
Tsugai hugged her close to him. He couldn't think of anything to comfort her with; his mind was still entangled with the events of long ago.
Akari had stopped shaking and was standing quietly in his arms. Tsugai listened to the only sound that could be heard in the small clearing: the sound of their breathing.
Click
Both Tsugai and Akari froze at the noise. Tsugai's muscles had tensed and he even held his breath, though he did this without realizing it. They both turned as they heard laughing coming from one of the bushes by the pond.
Tsugai's eye's narrowed as Jake stepped into the clearing.
"Sorry to interrupt, it was just such a touching scene that I had to take a photo to remember it by." Jake smirked as he waved the camera at them.
Akari's eyes widened. "Dammit." She whispered.
Jake leisurely stretched. "I wonder what Hiro would think if I showed him this picture. Something tells me he won't say 'it's cute'."
"What do you want?" Akari asked coldly.
Jake laughed. "If you sleep with me it should suffice."
Tsugai glared at him. "What the hell makes you think she would do that?" he growled.
"Well, she's been doing it with everyone else, I don't see why the whore wouldn't do it with me. I mean look at you, a half-blood. I'm sure she'd take me over a filthy mixed breed like you any day."
At this Akari pushed Tsugai away from her. She growled and stalked over to him.
"In case you forgot, Jake, I'm a half-breed too." Her face was inches from Jake's.
"It's okay, I forgive you of being a half-breed."
That sent Akari over the edge. Her fist came into harsh contact with Jake's stomach, the force of which sent him flying.
Jake sat up and spit the blood from his mouth. Glaring at Akari, he stood slowly, his arm clutching his stomach.
"You'll pay for that." He growled. "Now there's nothing you can do that would stop me from showing Hiro this picture."
Akari grimaced at the result of her action. She looked as if she was about to say something, but then thought better of it. Jake glared at her before turning and walking out the way they had come.
Once Jake had left, it was silent once more. Then there was a sudden crashing sound.
Flames crackled as a tree slowly went up in smoke. Akari looked at her hands with sadness in her eyes. Tsugai watched her silently, waiting to see what she would do next.
"I'm so stupid."
"No. You're not stupid."
"Yes, I the most stupid creature in the whole universe!"
"No. You're not."
Akari looked at him with exasperation. "What are we going to do now?"
Tsugai turned from her gaze. "I don't know."
"Do you think he will really show Hiro?"
"……… Probably."
Akari sat down on a large rock at the edge of the pond. "We'll be found out. Everyone will know."
Tsugai nodded slowly.
"They won't let us be together, will they?"
Tsugai shook his head. "No."
"What will happen to us? To you?"
Tsugai began to pace. "You know the penalty for our crime."
Akari stood up suddenly. "What crime? For being in love? For just existing? What crime have we committed?" she asked desperately.
Tsugai could see the pain in her eyes, hear it in her voice and sense it in the very root of her being. Tears spilled over her smooth cheeks as she began to shake her head violently form side to side.
"We have done nothing wrong!" she cried out.
"Akari."
"Nothing!"
"Akari." A bit louder now.
"Nothing!"
Tsugai walked up to her and grabbed her shoulders. Akari struggled against his grip, but he held fast.
"Akari, listen to me."
Akari stopped and looked at him. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying and her cheeks wet with tears.
Tsugai's eyes softened. "There is nothing we can do. We should go back to the palace for today. We will let things play out as they happen; one step at a time. Meanwhile, not a word of this to anyone, understand?"
Akari nodded slowly. Tsugai took her trembling hand in his strong, encouraging grasp. They then set off down the path towards the palace.
Wow. It took me forever to write this. Anyways, if you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. I know this story is a little confusing, but it will get cleared up as it progresses.
Too- Tsugai's real name was Tooya, till he became a Night, then they made him change his name. Only Akari, her mom, Chief, and Hiro know his real name.
That's it for now folks.
akariprince