It happened so fast.

"Please, help!"

One moment I was stopping a drunk man assaulting a woman.

"I said, back off!"

The next he ends up getting hurt due to my actions.

"Damn brat, I'll sue!"

Saturday, 9/4/2016

Afternoon

Tokyo

Ren gasps as he widens his eyes. His breathing becomes rapid and his heart rate follows suit. He looks around and takes in his surrounds. He is on a train, filled with students, workers and other commuters. After seeing this his breathing and heart rate return to a steady pace.

Another nightmare. Ren breathes deeply. I've been having more of them since that night. He exhales. Ren catches a glimpse at the news bulletin above the doors in front of him.

'Who are the Sailor Guardians? Tokyo's protectors or bringers of destruction?'

Typical of tabloid journalism. Ren sighed. It doesn't matter if the writer was saved by the Sailor Guardians, he'll still throw them under the bus. Ren admires them, for the past two years they have protected people from eldrich monstrosities and looked cool at the same time. I wouldn't mind seeing them in action. He then thinks about the monsters they end up fighting. But maybe I should just avoid trouble. Ren looks back at the bulletin and reads the next headline.

'Juvenile delinquency on the rise! Are our laws too soft?'

Ren frowns. The headline only served to remind him of what has happened in the past few months. A tear forms in the corner of his eye. He takes off his glasses as he wipes off the tear. He puts his glasses back on his face as he hears the train announcer.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving in Shibuya shortly." The female voice announces. Ren stands up from his seat, grabs his blue duffel bag from the overhead compartment above him, and begin to carry it off his shoulders. "This is the last stop for this line. Please transfer here for all subway lines." Ren moves in front of the doors he was sitting beside.

"What? Are you for real? A mental shutdown?" A girl's voice behind him exclaims. He turns his head and sees two air-headed school girls talking a bit too loudly.

"It's the truth!" The other girl replies.

"To a person though? That's gotta be a joke. You really love all that occult stuff, don't you?" The two girls giggle as Ren turns his head back and looks out the window.

A mental shutdown, huh? Ren thinks as the train slows down. It sounds like a medical problem rather than something supernatural. The train has almost stopped. Either way, it's not something I'm worried about. The train has come to a complete stop at the station.

"The doors to your left will open." On the announcer's command, the doors in front of Ren opens. He takes a deep breath before stepping off the train. He takes his phone out of his right pocket and opens up the GPS app.

"From here, it's just a short walk to station square," Ren mutters as he walks to his destination.

Shujin High School

Aoyama-Itchome

"Next Wednesday is the Volleyball rally," A woman with dark brown hair announces to her classroom, "normal classes won't be taking place and attendance is mandatory." A few students then began to whisper among themselves in response.

"We finally get to see Kamoshida-sensei in action."

"We're gonna get destroyed out there."

"At least we don't have any classes."

Among the quiet chatter, an annoyed groan is heard, coming from the back of the class. A couple of students turn their heads towards the source; a girl with long, blond hair tied with a red bow. She rests her head on her left hand while she looks out the window, with her blue eyes half open.

"Okay, settle down." The tired teacher commands the students. The whispers stop and most of them look at the teacher. "Kamoshida-sensei wants to emphasise that the rally is to promote teamwork and good sportsmanship. And above all else he wants all of you to have fun..."

"Bullshit." The girl with the red bow mutters. No one hears her; the teacher continues with her talk. The girl's face tenses up. It's bad enough that I have to see his face every day, but to now he feels the need to show-off. She clenches her right fist. If it were up to me, I'd transform into Sailor Venus, and use my Love-me chain to rip his fucking balls off. At that moment, her phone in her blazer's pocket vibrates. She takes the phone out of her pocket and unlocks it. It was a text message from one of her closest friends.

Usagi T: Are you ok Minako-chan? You look upset.

Minako's face relaxes as she looks towards the front of the class, towards her friend, Usagi Tsukino. She wasn't hard to spot. She also had blue eyes and long blond hair that reaches her knees. What makes her stick out, even more, is her hairstyle, which is a twin pigtail tied into an odango. Usagi looks at Minako with a look of concern on her face.

Minako A: I'm fine, just something on my mind.
Usagi T: Do you want to talk about it?

Typical of Usagi, she worries about her friend's problems, no matter how trivial they are.

Minako A: I said I'm fine, just don't worry about it.

Usagi T: That just makes me worry more.

Minako A: Well you shouldn't. It's not your problem.

Usagi T: Is it about Kamoshida?

Minako A: I told you it's not your problem! You're starting to piss me off!

Usagi T: Don't say that. I just wanted to help.

After seeing her response, Minako glances at Usagi, who is visibly upset and is on the verge of crying. What's wrong with me? Usagi is her friend, her princess. Minako knew that Usagi hated seeing her friends upset. She feels miserable now.

Minako A: I'm sorry about that. I shouldn't have said that.

Usagi T: Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?

Minako A: I'm not sure.

Usagi T: Fine. Just do it when you're ready.

Minako A: Ok. And about what I said before, I truly am sorry about that.

Usagi T: I forgive you, I know you didn't mean it. Stress can get the better of you.

Minako A: I still want to make it up for you.

Usagi T: Then how does an afternoon at Fruits with the girls sound?

Minako A: Ok! I will text Rei-chan to let her know to meet us there after school.

Usagi T: Not today. Ami-chan and Mako-chan have clubs today.

Minako A: And Rei-chan?

Usagi T: I think her archery club is on today.

Minako A: What about you?

Usagi T: I'm skyping Mamo-chan after school.

Minako A: Fiiiiiinnnnnnnne. We'll go tomorrow.

Usagi T: Cool.

Minako looks towards Usagi and sees her smiling. Content with their plans for tomorrow, she puts her phone back into her blazer's pocket, noticing Usagi doing the same thing. They once again pay attention to the teacher, who was talking throughout their conversation.

"And finally, a transfer student will be arriving on Monday, and he will be attending this class for the year."

A transfer student, hm? Minako looks toward the empty desk to her left. She smiles as she imagines what he looks like.

Shibuya Crossing

Ren looks up from his phone as he stops walking, gazing upon the famous Shibuya Crossing. He sees people scattering all over the street, like a colony of ants gathering around littered food. And the noise from the cars, people and music are almost deafening. Ren stares at the massive crowd. He gulps loudly and his breathing slightly speeds up. It's even more crowded than Mum said it was. Before he panics, Ren closes his eyes and takes a few deep breaths. He hated crowds back in his hometown, but this is something else. Still, he needed to press on.

*Pi Pi Pi*

Ren opens his eyes at the notification sound coming from his phone. He looks down at the screen, to find an app had been installed without his consent. The app's icon looks like cracked, red glass with some eyeball in the middle of it. What is this? The icon enlarges itself, covering most of the home screen. Ren touches the icon, trying to open the app, but it doesn't open.

Everything around Ren suddenly goes quiet. He looks up and is shocked to find that everything had stopped moving as if time itself had frozen. He begins to panic, his heart rate and breathing accelerate, he frantically looks around, trying to find anyone else that isn't stuck in time. He then sees a blue fire across the street, growing in size. Ren's eyes widen in fear as he steps away from the flame. "What is going on!?" He asks loudly, but no one listens.

"I am Thou," Ren hears a voice similar to his, only deeper. He can't tell if it's coming from somewhere in the crowd or from in his head.

"Thou Art I." The voice continues. Ren stumbles backwards when he sees the flame morph into a discernible shape. It looks like a winged creature.

"Thou art full of fear," Ren notices a human-like figure standing before the flames. He seems to be wearing a black coat. The only facial features Ren makes out is the figure's black hair. Ren continues to slowly walks backwards. "Could it be that you believe your decision," The black coated figure looks up, revealing his face looking exactly like Ren. "was a mistake?" Ren is shocked at the doppelganger's appearance, his bright yellow eyes and toothy grin are the prominent features Ren could make out before a bright flash comes from the flames. Blinded, Ren steps backwards, bumping into a businessman.

"Hey, kid! Watch where you're going!" At that moment, Ren's sight returns to see that the flow of time has returned, so has the deafening sound of the crowds and cars. Still breathing rapidly and his eyes full of fear, he looks for the fiery demon and his doppelganger, but both of them were nowhere to be found.

Ren leans against a wall and attempts to calm his breathing while he tries to comprehend what just happened. Was it a monster attack? Why would it stop time for everyone in Shibuya but him? Was it a mental shutdown? That thing the girls on the train mentioned. Was it a hallucination? Ren didn't know. His hands are shaking, he nearly drops his phone because of it.

Ren tries to calm himself. He slows down his breathing and his hands slowly stop shaking. I'm just seeing things, I haven't gotten that much sleep in days. He rationalises to himself. He spent the last few weeks preparing his move to Tokyo with little rest. Ren looks at his phone and notices the time. I should get going. I don't want to upset Sakura-san by being late. He deletes the mysterious app without a second thought and begins to walk towards the crossing.

Yongen-Jaya

Yongen-Jaya seems like a district that Tokyo forgot about. It's not that populated and most of the store shutters are closed, despite being in the afternoon. Ren notes that the area is surprisingly quiet compared to the rest of the city. He was told by his mother to meet his guardian, Sojiro Sakura, at the cafe he owns. It wasn't too hard to locate. After entering the intimate backstreets of Yongen, Ren took the first right turn and it was on his left just a few metres, across from a bathhouse.

Cafe Leblanc is a store that doesn't stick out. Its sign above the entrance wasn't anything fancy, just plain text on a red and white background saying what store it is and what it served: 'Coffee & Curry.'

Ren spent nearly two minutes staring at Leblanc's door. He was unsure what awaited him on the other side. He wanted to run away, go back home, hide somewhere, do anything but go inside, but he doesn't have any other choice. He either obeys the rules and guidelines that are laid out for him, or he loses the little freedom he has left. This is his life now. Ren steels himself and enters the cafe.

As Ren enters Leblanc, the first thing that hits him is the overwhelming scent of coffee. The shelves behind the counter are stacked with various coffee beans, there are devices on the bar, from the other end of the store heating up coffee, and there is an elderly couple sitting at a booth enjoying their cups of coffee.

Leblanc itself looks like it was built in the 1980s. It definitely invokes a feeling of nostalgia from Ren, despite him not being around during the '80s. There were a few booths to the left of the cafe and a bar with stools to the right. The only thing that seemed out of place was the flat screen tv at the other end of the store. It was playing some tabloid show, with its volume at full blast.

"A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it!" The male host exclaims. "The citizens can't live in peace if this keeps up!"

"How frightening." The elderly man reacts to this news.

"What could be going on?" The elderly woman sitting across from him asks with concern. "Didn't something similar happen just the other day?"

"Vertical is...the name of a shellfish used for farming pearls..." Says a voice, disinterested at the conversation the elderly couple is having. Ren looks to where the voice came from. It came from a middle-aged man sitting on a barstool. He is wearing a pink shirt, beneath a black apron. His hair is a slick black, though it is receding, and his beard neatly connects to his goatee.

Ren wonders if he is Sojiro Sakura. "Excuse me," Ren says to the man, attempting to get his attention. The man glances at him over his glasses.

"Oh, right." the man said, sounding annoyed. He places his newspaper on the bar and stands up from his stool. "They did say that was today."

As if on queue, the elderly couple stood up from their seats and are preparing to leave. "We'll be going now. The payments on the table." Says the elderly man.

"Thanks for coming." The bearded man replies, sounding somewhat grateful for the business.

"This place is in the back alley, so there are no worries of a car crashing here."

The bearded man widens his eyes at the odd statement. "A what now?"

"There's been a string of those rampaging accidents." The elderly man calmly answers. "I just hope that none happen around here."

The bearded man's expression relaxes. "It's none of my concern."

The elderly man chuckles at his reply. "We'll see you next time." The elderly couple walks out of the cafe.

The bearded man rubs his forehead as he lets out an annoyed sigh. "Four hours for a single cup of coffee." The man looks at Ren. It seems like he views him as an inconvenience. What else is new? "I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you're the one?" The man asks.

"I'm Ren Amamiya." Ren politely says, trying to make a good first impression. "Are you Sakura-san?"

"Yeah." He confirms. "I'm Sojiro Sakura. You'll be in my custody over the next year."

"I appreciate it." Ren bows. "Thank you for taking me in."

"Yeah, yeah," Sojiro replies, sounding indifferent to the whole situation. He turns around and begins to walk to the back of the store, and motions Ren to follow. "Anyway, come with me."

Ren follows Sojiro to the back of the cafe. They climb some stairs into the cafe's attic. Ren is confused. Why is he being shown the store's attic? It's a mess. There's dust and cobwebs everywhere, the shelves and desk are littered with old books, and the table beside the couch is covered with nothing but newspapers. And on top of that, the room is massive, it would be a pain in the arse to clean.

Ren then noticed the box he sent that is full of necessities from his home. Why is my stuff in this filthy attic?

"This is your room." Sojiro seemingly answering Ren's mental question.

Ren widens his eyes. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was bad enough that he was forced to move away from home, and now he has to spend the next year in an attic. It never ends.

"I'll at least give you sheets for your bed." Said Sojiro. Ren could hardly call it a bed. It was just some cheap mattress placed on top of plastic crates. Sojiro turns to Ren, "You look like you wanna say something."

Ren had several things he wanted to say, about the state of the room, about his 'bed', and the fact that it wasn't even tidied up in the slightest before he arrived, as if Sojiro had forgotten about the arrangement until today. However, "It's big." Was all Ren could meekly say.

"You'll have to clean up the rest," Sojiro replied. "I lock the place after I leave each night. You'll be alone at night, but don't think about doing anything stupid. I will kick you out if you cause any trouble. Understand?"

The sudden harsh tone catches Ren off guard. "Yes, sir." He meekly replied.

"Good, now then," Sojiro continues, "I got the gist of your situation. You protected some woman from a man that was forcing himself on her, he got injured in the process and sued you. Right?" Ren confirms this with a meek nod. "That's what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults." Ren looks down at the floor, trying his best not to show his feelings. Sojiro is just repeating what he had already heard from everyone else from the past few months.

Sojiro continues. "And now that you've got a criminal record, you were expelled from your high school. The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your mother also approved. In other words, she got rid of you for being a pain in the arse." Sojiro's harsh words served as a reminder of what happened to Ren. He tries to remain expressionless. He tries to hold back the tears.

"Just behave yourself for the year." Sojiro's tone softens. "If nothing happens, your probation will be lifted."

"A whole year..." Ren softly said.

"Cause any problems, and you'll be sent straight to juvie. Understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Anyway, we'll be going to Shujin High School tomorrow. We'll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there. There is rarely a place that will accept someone like you." Sojiro sighed with annoyance. "What a waste of my Sunday." He then left and went back downstairs, leaving Ren alone in his new room.

Ren places his duffel bag on top of his box. He then slowly walks to the bed as he unbuttons his blazer. He sits on the bed, which he found uncomfortable, as he expected from a mattress placed on top of plastic crates. He looks out towards the rest of the room. Ren takes it all in, the floor is so dusty he can see his footprints, the cobwebs scattered all around the ceiling and the trash littered everywhere.

"So, this is my life now," Ren says to himself. He lowers his head, thinking of what happened to him in the past few months. He just wanted to help that woman, now he's being treated like the trash of society.

"That's what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults."

Sojiro's words echo in Ren's mind. He should've ignored it, but...

"Stop it! Let me go!"

Her cries of help were filled with the most genuine tone of terror he had ever heard in his life...

"Please help!"

He couldn't have ignored it, even if he wanted to. But Sojiro's words still echo in his mind. Ren begins to think that maybe he shouldn't have intervened. If that never happened, he would still be in his hometown, with his mother. He would still have a future ahead of him. But would I be able to live with the guilt? Ren doesn't know what to think.

"Could it be that you believe your decision was a mistake?"

The words of Ren's doppelganger pop up in his head. He slides off the bed and sits on the dusty floor, resting his back on the bed. Tears begin to build up in his eyes.

A mistake? Ren's mind wanders once again to what happened after his arrest. The mere thought of those events makes him want to cry. Don't cry. He was given a criminal record that labelled him as a menace to society. Don't cry. He was expelled from his school. Please don't cry. His friends and family cut ties to him. Sakura-san will hear you, please don't. He made his mother cry. Don't do it. And he was forced to live in an overpopulated hell alone as punishment for his deeds, with the risk of being killed by whatever monster decides to attack. All because he tried to help someone he didn't know. Please. Was what he did a mistake? Ren didn't know. Don't. There was only one thing he knew. Cry.

"I want to go home." Tears begin to drop from his eyes as he breaks into a sob. He tries to stop but he couldn't. He takes off his glasses so it doesn't catch any tears. He has never been so scared in his life. He's all alone.

*Pi Pi Pi*

Ren hears his phone go off. He takes it out of his pocket. He sees someone texted him, the first person to text him in weeks, but he can't see who texted him. His tears are making his vision blurry. He dries his eyes with his sleeve while he opens the text. He sees the text clearly when his vision clears up.

Asuka A: Did you arrive in Tokyo safely?

It was his mother. Ren couldn't believe it, she actually contacted him.

Ren A: Yes. I am at Sakura-san's place right now.

Asuka A: I'm glad you're safe.

Ren A: Thanks, Mum. After everything that's happened, I thought you wouldn't care about me.

Asuka A: Don't you dare think that! At the end of the day, you are still my little Ren-bo and despite everything that happened, I still love you more than anything on this Earth.

Ren becomes ecstatic at that text. He smiles for what feels like the first time in months and he cries tears of joy. She still loves me.

Ren A: Thanks.

Asuka A: I have some work to do, so I will talk to you don't give up. If not for you, then for me. And live up to the Amamiya name.

Ren A: I will. I love you, Mum.

Asuka A: I love you too Ren-bo.

Evening

Ren is wearing his pyjamas and he's brushing his teeth in Leblanc's bathroom, getting ready for bed. He spent the afternoon cleaning his new room. It took him a while just to clean the floors and windows. He will have to choose another time to clear the desk and the bookshelf next to his bed.

Sojiro came up as Ren was eating his dinner. Simply to tell him that he's leaving and locking up for the night, but expressed surprise that Ren took the time to actually clean his room.

Ren finishes brushing his teeth and heads for bed. He turns off the attic's lights and settles into bed.

Ren is still not looking forward to the days ahead, but he decided to go through with it, for his mother.

*Pi Pi Pi*

Ren grabs his phone out of his pocket and unlocks it. "It's that app from this afternoon. I thought I deleted it." As Ren attempts to delete it, his eyelids get heavy. He tries to keep them open enough to delete the app before it can do anything to his phone. But he fails. His eyes close and drift into unconsciousness.

Unknown Place

Ren wakes up in what looks like a prison cell, covered in blue. He can hear chains rattling and water dripping from the cell's toilet. He sits up on his bed and tries to remember how he got here, with the last thing he remembers is him falling asleep in his room. He begins to panic. How did I get here? Was I kidnapped? Did I die in my sleep? What is happening?

"Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in the real world." Ren hears an elderly voice say. "I have summoned you within your dreams."

Ren looks to the outside of the cell, its door is open. He sees a wide-open room outside of the cell. And in the centre of the room, he sees an old man sitting at the desk. He has bulging eyes, his grin literally reaching from ear to ear and he has the longest nose Ren had ever seen in his life.

Standing next to the desk was a young looking girl with golden eyes in a blue dress. She has long platinum hair wrapped in a blue headband. She is also holding an absurdly large book in her arms that looks like it will slip out at any moment.

What on earth is going on? Ren asks himself, not know what could happen next.

"Welcome Trickster," the bizarre old man says, "to the Velvet Room."

À Suivre

A/N:

I'm sorry this Chapter took so damn long to write. The past two months felt like I was back in high school, spending time on the internet and playing video games instead of studying and doing homework. It's true when they say 'Old habits die hard'.

This chapter was also meant to have been a little longer but the issue I had above, not to mention several re-writes of scenes within this chapter, so I decided to shorten this chapter.

But from this point on, I will promise more consistent updates.

*Cross-posted on AO3 & Spacebattles