Chapter Seven: Overdue Dream
A new dream-
I have one I know
That very few dream!
I would like to see
That overdue dream-
Even though
It never may come true!
A New Life, Wildhorn's Jekyll and Hyde Musical
xxXxx
Haru was still troubled ten minutes later. Her feet barely made any sound as she strolled over the soft grass. She had pulled on the baggy sweater again, and one arm was over her chest as she slowly made her way around the manor.
A handful of gardeners looked up as she approached, and waved before returning to their tasks.
Haru waved back at them, but didn't slow her pace until they were behind her. She sighed, and held one gloved hand to the part of her forehead that wasn't covered by the mask. 'Seriously; who would want to spy on me here? Surely the Jirashi family couldn't have recruited anyone from this place.'
With how peaceful this place was, what had happened in Japan was starting to feel like a bad dream she couldn't get rid of.
Her shoulders began to shake, as her gloved fingers traced the edge of her mask.
No. She would bear this reminder for the rest of her life. No matter how hard she tried to forget about what had happened for most of her life, she would remember every time she saw her reflection.
'But that's what you wanted, isn't it, Kamui?' she thought bitterly. 'You said that you wanted me to think of you every day for the rest of my life. If I had known you meant it like this…'
Haru saw a white bench circling a tree close by, and sank into it gratefully. She leaned back until her scalp was pressed against the bark, and breathed the soft scent of the woods.
'No. He's gone now; I'll never have to worry about him or his uncle again. I'm free. Well, as free as I'm going to get.' She sighed yet again, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth.
Another cloud passed over the sun. Numbly, Haru watched the shadow pass by, following it until her eyes were led to the forest, barely twenty yards away and at the bottom of a slight hill.
Her mouth fell open slightly, and stared at the perfect scene in front of her. There was a cozy opening between two large willow trees, and just the right hint of early spring flowers dotting the light green grass.
Haru's hands frantically pulled off the art bag to open it up, and open her sketch book to a fresh page. She grabbed a pencil, and started drawing at a frantic pace.
She hadn't been hit with inspiration this hard in… years? She wasn't quite certain, but the scene was too perfect to resist.
The reason for her eagerness became clear as she sketched something into the little opening.
At first glance, it appeared to be a horse. But the tail was much longer, and more akin to that of a lion. There were also long tufts of hair on each ankle, in a way that was almost never seen except for on goats.
Then Haru added the defining piece; a horn sprouting from its forehead.
The unicorn had its head lowered to the grass so that it could graze, but the picture didn't quite feel complete. But there were too many details to add another unicorn…
Instead, Haru erased some of the lines around the unicorn's middle to fill it with an Elvin princess. Her slim hand rested on the unicorn's neck, the other hand beckoning to a passing bird. Her gown was simple, but elegant, and her long dark hair was held in place by a metal circlet.
Haru suddenly stopped short, and stared at her creation with wide eyes.
The princess was Tara. How did that work out?
"Haru? Haru, where are you?" a familiar voice called out frantically, fast footsteps clearly making their way closer.
Haru looked up in confusion, but started whistling as loud as she could manage.
Toto emerged from a row of trees, his face pale with worry. He ran even faster to her, and grabbed her upper arms fiercely.
She gasped as her sketchbook fell to the ground. 'What is he doing?'
"Haru, what are you doing out here?" he demanded as he pulled her to her feet. "Didn't your father warn you about the woods?"
Vaguely, Haru recalled her father's words while driving up to the manor, and shrugged a little.
Toto gave an exasperated sigh, and grabbed her book with one hand while keeping the other one on her arm. "That's not a good answer, Haru. If I had known you were out here, I'd have retrieved you sooner. Come along; we're late for lunch."
Haru bit her lip and grabbed her bag before reluctantly letting Toto drag her away from the bench. 'Just what is his problem, all the sudden?'
"Since your father didn't tell you, it falls to me," he said in a dead serious voice. "The forest isn't as innocent as it looks, Haru. Strange things happen, when one gets too close to it, and I don't want anything to happen to you."
'What does he take me for? A stupid little kid?' she thought furiously.
"Please, Haru. Don't go near the forest again," Toto begged her, actually stopping to give her a big hug. "I know your father doesn't believe anything's wrong with the forest, but trust me; there is."
Haru looked up at him defiantly, but then blinked in shock. 'Is he crying? Holy cow, can it be that big of a deal?'
"Haru… you have no idea how important it is for you to stay away from the forest," he choked out, looking at her with terror. "Please, don't come out here again without at least another person with you?"
She patted his arm awkwardly and nodded her head. 'All right, all right; just stop crying, already!'
"You promise?" he asked again, intent through his tears.
She nodded quickly. 'Yes, but stop crying; it's creepy!'
He breathed a huge sigh of relief, using the arm that was holding her sketch book to wipe his face dry on the sleeve. "I'm sorry if I scared you, but you really scared me just now. The gardens and such are okay, but please don't come even this close to the forest anymore."
Haru looked over her shoulder in longing, but nodded sadly. 'It looks like my tree-hopping days are over. But at least I shouldn't need to do it anymore.'
It was about then that Toto noticed that he was carrying her sketchbook. He stole a glance at her current work in progress, and stopped cold in his tracks. He slowly let go of Haru's arm to hold the book between his hands with wide eyes.
She rubbed where he had been holding her, since he had done it a little roughly.
"Haru…" he said softly. "Did you do this one just now?"
She nodded.
Toto flipped a few pages behind it, and then tried the one page in front of it. He stared at her Sakura Picnic, his eyes growing wider.
Haru started squirming nervously. She normally didn't allow anyone to see her work, except her mother and sometimes at her mother's quilting conventions. More to the point, she hated to let anyone see her work before it was finished.
Toto suddenly looked up at her, and grinned widely. "I keep hearing from your mother that you paint, Haru. Are your paintings as good as this?"
She looked at him, wondering if she should tell him the truth.
"Come now, it's a simple question," he coaxed, closing her sketch book. "Do you paint as well as you draw?"
She sighed, and pulled out her little notepad. To be honest, sir, I paint much better than I draw.
Toto looked at the sentence with barely-contained glee. "Would you mind terribly, if I showed this to my cousin?"
Haru flinched with horror, and made a grab for her book.
Toto held it away like a bully and laughed. "Don't worry; I'll give it right back after Humbert sees it. The reason I want to show him is because I think we have a job for you."
Haru froze. 'Really?'
"It will have to wait until after you take the test, of course, but I'm pretty sure that we've got something for you to do. Is it all right if my cousin sees this?"
Slowly, she nodded. 'Does his cousin want his portrait done? What does his cousin look like?'
"You won't regret it," he promised her with a wide grin, his terror completely gone for the present. "Now come along; we really are late for lunch."
ooOoo
"Now remember, Sweetheart. You need to get a good night's rest tonight," Naoko said while packing up the last of her clothes from the wardrobe. "I want you to be at your best for the test tomorrow."
Haru nodded, still in her regular clothes as she sat on the edge of her bed. Toto should be back any second with Tommy and her sketchbook, which is why her mother was taking so long to pack her things.
Zipping her bag up with a sigh, Naoko sat next to her pale daughter, and wrapped her in a big hug. "Are you sure you'll be all right alone? I don't have to leave tonight, if you're still nervous."
Haru shook her head firmly. "It's about time you and Dad started sorting things out. I'll be all right," she signaled.
Naoko bit her lip nervously. "It isn't that I don't love him, Haru; I've always loved him. It's just that… I don't want to get into another ugly fight by rushing things, you know?"
"I know, but I'm all for it. You're only down the hallway now, remember? I'll be fine."
Naoko gave her a smile and a hug. "You're not saying that to be brave, are you?"
Haru shook her head again. It would be nice to have her own room for once, and even nicer for her parents to speak outside meals, since there was usually a large audience present.
A knock at the door announced Toto, smiling sheepishly as he passed his son to Haru.
"I still don't get it," he said softly as Haru gently ran her knuckles over Tommy's back, and swayed from one foot to the other. "You're not doing anything all that different from what we've been doing. How can you calm him down so easily?"
Haru shrugged, since she didn't know the answer either, and whistled a soft lullaby to the cooing baby.
"Has she always been this good with kids?" Toto asked as he set her sketchbook on the desk.
Naoko exchanged a nervous glance with her daughter. "I really don't know, Toto. Haru's never really been around children."
He looked at the teenager curiously. "Oh? Why not?"
Haru shrugged again, Tommy nearly asleep on her shoulder. 'Maybe I got sick of being prank fodder.'
"We never really socialized, except for quilting conventions," Naoko explained. "The few children that were there were kept close by their mothers, so Haru never got any practice."
Toto stared at her in shock, and then slowly looked at Haru.
She squirmed uncomfortably under his gaze, but rubbed Tommy's back one more time before giving him back to his father.
The sleeping baby only gave a small sigh as Toto nestled him into one arm. The doctor stared at Haru a little longer, but then shook his head as he bowed to both of the women. "Thanks again for helping with Tommy, Haru. Experienced or not, you've got the right touch."
She bowed one more time on reflex as he opened the door.
"Try not to worry about Tanya, though. She'll get over her shyness soon enough."
Haru bit her lip as the door closed. 'But she sounded so assertive when he was describing her last week.'
About then, her father came by, shouting a ridiculous insult at Toto before collecting her mother's bags and kissing Haru goodnight.
She smiled in satisfaction, watching the two of them leave her room. She knew things weren't healed yet, but at least her parents were trying.
Haru locked her door, got ready for bed, and shut off the light. 'Too dark!' she thought in a panic, quickly turning on the lights again. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as she ran across the room to open the curtain.
The moon was nearing its halfway stage, so there was less light than what she preferred. But she had a lovely view of the flower gardens from here.
Haru scoffed angrily at herself, even as she made a small bed in the cozy window seat. 'Imagine; scared of the dark at seventeen. Thank heaven Kamui never caught onto it.'
She shut off the lights again, and quickly ran across the small room to curl up in the window seat with one of the warmer blankets. She sighed happily as the soft pillow collided with her right cheek. The weakening moonlight surrounded her like a halo, caressing her as she slowly fell asleep.
She never realized that she had fallen asleep with the mask still on.
