Title: Malice in Darkness
A/N: Chapter two up now!!!!! Oh and BTW, this fic is NOT based on LOTR, nor did I even get the idea from it! In fact, that was the last thing on my mind when I wrote this! Actually, I planned for them to be wearing bangles… but it was kinda off for guys to do that right? So I settled for rings.
Slamdunker88-What happened to the 'I'll make you review all the chapters' WY??
Emerald Space2-Thanks for saying so
Ayu-Thanks, do continue reading my other fic and reviewing it too!
Chapter 2- Alone
It was a pretty long time before someone-which was Yohei-pointed out the markings on Sakuragi's finger. In fact, it was lunchtime when that happened.
'Hanamichi, What's that?'
'Ei?' Sakuragi asked, jerking out of a fantasy, where he and Haruko were walking alone in a distant…
…dark
…land. Sakuragi shook his head violently.
Where did that word come from? It was just a DREAM dammit!
'Hanamichi, daijoubu ka?' Yohei asked with concern. Sakuragi turned towards him, trying his best to clear is whirling brain.
'Daijoubu… What did you ask me?'
'What is that?' Yohei repeated, pointing at Sakuragi's fourth finger. Sakuragi glanced at it indifferently, but upon seeing the markings, started looking intently at it. His mind threw thousands of unreasonable explanations to what that marking stood for… but the most prominent one was…
Shut up! Shutupshutupshutupshutup!!!!!!!!
He tried to push the thought away, but to no avail.
Exactly where you placed the ring…
Sakuragi shook his head again, more violently this time. A few students at the cafeteria looked at him, a little surprised.
He's slow, Rukawa thought to himself, totally forgetting that it was Sakuragi himself who had made him aware of the little meaningless-or at least so he thought-mark on his finger.
'Hanamichi?' Takamiya this time. He ignored them all, his mind still spinning.
Can you still believe that it was nothing but a dream?
At that exact same moment, the image of Rukawa's frightened look emerged and plastered itself onto the surface of his mind.
He saw it too! That was why he looked so scared!
He has it too!
That was too much for Sakuragi. He pushed his chair aside, toppled some of his milk in the attempt of getting up, mumbled something about a full bladder, and left the cafeteria. He walked with long strides, earning more then just a few glances from his fellow school-mates. But his mind was so full of thoughts that he didn't notice their questioning looks, nor did he realize that Rukawa was outside the cafeteria, waiting for him, until he bumped right into him.
Rukawa's eyes flicked towards his fingers which were held out in front of him, then back towards his face.
'You're slow in noticing facts, doa'ho,' he muttered. Sakuragi bristled, but only a little. His fright was getting the better of him. And yet, no matter what, he was determined to not let Rukawa know that.
'Hmph! The Tensai saw it much earlier!' he said in that extraordinary loud voice of his. Rukawa just continued staring at him with that unemotional look, which suggested to Sakuragi that he was terrible in acting, and that Rukawa definitely didn't believe what he said.
Then all of a sudden, darkness enveloped the both of them… the whole school to be exact. They heard all kinds of shouts coming from the cafeteria. The happy whooping from the boys. The terrified screams of the girls. The questioning 'what is this?' from the smarter students… and yet, they could not hear it at all.
The déjà vu that struck them both was so strong that they fell to their knees, trying to keep a clear course in their thoughts.
The darkness…
The malevolence…
* * * * * * * *
In Kainan High School, it was lunchtime, and all the students were talking happily, loudly, scaring away whatever stray dogs that might be roaming around there. All the students, except one. Soichiro Jin. Even though everything was going on normally-had been ever since school started today-he still felt a little worried… and very unsettled.
Looking around, Jin thought that he was being a little to cautious, especially when there was nothing at all to be cautious about. So what? A mark on his finger did not bring any meaning whatsoever. Why couldn't he act normal just the way others were?
But the feeling clung on to him the way a famished mouse would cling on to whatever food it sets its eyes upon, no matter how disgusting it was. He excused himself from his group of friends uneasily, and walked towards the gym. As he was walking along the corridor, he realized one very odd fact. There was no one, not a single soul, out of the cafeteria.
'That's odd,' he whispered to himself. However, before he reached the gym, he was just a foot away from the gym in fact, when the darkness descended.
Jin's breathing became a tad bit more ragged. For some inexplicable reason, he was scared, no, terrified of the darkness, something that was very rare. He drew in breaths by gulps, forcing his lungs to continue functioning. Feeling unstable, he leaned towards the wall, hoping that he could still keep his balance.
The darkness was so… deep, that he felt blinded by it. Clenching his hands, he realized that he could feel it… and amidst all the shouts of from his fellow school-mates, he also realized that he could hear it. Its swift breathing, its hungry call. Shudders twisted themselves up his spine. And yet, surrounded by darkness, the rational part of his mind still strived to function. Surrounded by the darkness, Jin wondered whether he was going mad.
* * * * * * * *
In Shoyo, Hanagata rubbed his hands together. For some reason or another, he felt extremely cold… and scared.
'Toru?' Hanagata turned towards his best friend who was sitting beside him.
'Yeah?'
'You look different. Are you all right?' Hanagata nodded sullenly. And yet, his heart drummed a little faster than usual, and was quickly picking up speed.
What is you problem? That fortune teller was just pulling your leg, fooling around with you!
Flashback… four days ago.
'Toru, as your birthday treat, I'll take you to the fortune teller living in that weird shack,' Hanagata's brother said.
'Urgh! Fortune tellers! No thanks!' he replied, wrinkling his nose. His brother's face was immediately lit up with a dervish smile.
'Are you scared? Fine, I dare you to go there!' Frowning, Hanagata fell straight for the bait, saying,
'Fine, I'll go. And by the way, I'm NOT scared!'
* * * * * * * *
The whole place was filled with thin strings of cobwebs.
Jeez! Why on Earth did I agree to do this? I questioned myself furiously. All the weird things hanging at the doorway jingled as we entered. There was some kind of weird aura around that place. Was it… fear?
Well, it sure is freaking me out! I thought to myself, looking around nervously.
'Can I help you?' A spooky voice greeted us.
Yeah! Can I get the hell out of here? I thought sarcastically turning towards the voice. My eyes fell on a tall lady, wearing a ridiculous long-sleeved dress that went all the way to her toes. It was far from ridiculous… it was ludicrous, considering the heat. Her long hair swept behind her… green, and it looked natural-coloured too. I shuddered involuntarily. Big hoops hung from her ears. Her wrinkled-covered face told me that she was practically sixty. But the thing that scared me most was her eyes. They were an illogical eccentric blue colour… and yet, it seemed to hold wisdom, and it left a queer feeling in me, as if she could read my mind.
Man… talk about gypsies.
'My little brother wants to have his fortune told.'
'Come here, don't be afraid, my son. Sit!'
Funny how you can ask me to not be scared when your voice definitely suggests that I should!
And yet… yet, her voice held authority, and it lulled me to obey her words. Obediently, I sat in front of the glass ball.
Your voice does not tally your age.
And yet, I sat there, patiently, while she looked into the glass ball and hummed some stupid crap. It seemed to go on for hours, and I was getting more nervous. The very room suggested that I should anyway.
Then, all of a sudden, she screamed! A chilling, spine-tingling, high scream. A got so shocked that I nearly fell off the chair.
Stumbling backwards, pointing at me, she muttered all kinds of nonsense, which didn't in the very least relieve me from the nervousness that held me captive.
'You… you… the ancestral evil. It's you!' she gasped.
'Huh?' I asked her, totally bewildered.
What the hell?
I glanced at my brother, hoping to see at least some help there, but what I saw didn't relieve me at all. Instead, it sparked a tiny fire of fear in my heart. And that fire was definitely getting bigger, spreading.
His face was just neural! There was no shock! That face displayed no fear! It remained emotionless.
I stood up abruptly, accidentally knocking the glass ball down. It shattered into a million pieces. And amidst the shards of glass…
Blood started oozing out!
I vaguely heard another scream from the lady. I, on the other hand, was shocked speechless. I just stood there, watching, as the blood twisted itself into the number four.
'Wh… What?' I asked, turning to her, pointing at the number. Her face was coated with fear so great that I gasped. She spluttered something inaudible.
'What the hell is that?!" I asked again, this time there was a hint of anger in my voice-a put on anger. I was far to scared to actually be angry. The weird aura and the atmosphere in the room weren't helping in anyway to abate my fear either.
It's so miserable terrifying in here… and what's with that idiotic black cloth flapping around?
I was scared stiff… and that cloth at the end of the room, was still flapping around lazily, as if mocking me.
'In four days! The ancestral evil will make its appearance in four days!' she screamed hysterically. And that was it. I could get no more out of her. She just continued screaming and screaming, tears streaming down her face. Tears from those glittering sapphire-blue eyes.
'What? What on Earth is the ancestral evil?' The blood was spreading, the number dissolving. And yet, all the lady did was scream. The weird ornaments jingled steadily, although there was no wind at all. I felt… bitterness… wickedness, swirling in the room, just like the imaginary wind was swirling in the room, jingling the ornaments.
'Toru, let's go,' my brother said. I turned towards him. And for just one moment, my breath caught in my throat. There was something in his eyes… a spark of recognition. And that was enough to make my blood run cold. But that look was there for a while. It was gone a moment later. And yet, there was still no shock whatsoever written on his face.
We walked out, leaving the screaming gypsy… and for some reason, I felt sorry for her. I turned to look at her one last time… but what I saw was something much more terrifying. The blood on the floor was expanding, and at the same time, rising. It was entering the woman's body, but the woman only continued screaming, as if not aware that the blood was seriously entering her… and yet, she was changing before his eyes. The remaining blood on the floor twisted itself into two words.
Toru Hanagata
Back to the present…
'Hanagata!' Hanagata's eyes which were misty snapped back into focus immediately. He looked at Hasegawa who called him questioningly. Hasegawa just pointed at Hanagata's hands. He looked down.
His burger was smashed between his hands… and oozing out of his burger was…
…blood
… red sauce.
The déjà vu struck him so strongly. He stood up quickly, dropping the burger onto his plate at the same time.
'Toru?' Fujima really sounded worried this time.
'Er… I need to wash my hands,' he mumbled, walking towards the restroom. While washing his hands, Hanagata replayed the sudden impulse, the sudden word that had crossed his mind at that time, freaking him out more than anything else had.
Blood…
It was so… different, so startlingly frightening.
What made me think that? What the hell happening in here?
Stop it! It was nothing! It's just your nerves, and stupidity, believing what you saw at the gypsy's place! Remember what happened when we reached home?
Flashback… four days ago.
'Oni-chan… what the hell was that?' Hanagata asked after they had put several miles between themselves and the fortune teller. His brother looked at him surprised.
'Huh?' Hanagata stared at his brother disbelievingly.
Where were you the whole time I was at the stupid gypsy's place scared to death with everything happening? In a farm? Hanagata fumed.
'What on Earth is the ancestral evil? What's with that gypsy, and the stupid glass ball which seemed to ooze out blood?' he asked, a little hysterical now.
'Haven't you ever been to a fortune teller's place before? Anyhow, you are already seventeen, you should know by now that they never tell the truth.'
'Then why did you bring me there?'
'To get over your fear. You may not know why you're so scared of the gypsies, but I do. There was a time, when you were like four, we brought you to a fair, and something like that happened. It was a little different at that time, and the gypsy died before your eyes… I won't go into details… but since then, you never dared to go within ten feet near any fortune teller. I must admit, I never expected any such thing to happen, but they're all false. Maybe I made a mistake to bring you to such a psychotic fortune teller, but as I said, I didn't know such a thing could… would happen… but whatever it is, they aren't real okay?'
Hanagata knew that he was always scared of a fortune teller, but the reason had always been vague to him…
They are false…
Back to the present…
Hanagata turned off the tap.
Oni-chan said it's… they are not real! Of course they aren't!
And yet, no matter how much he tried to convince himself, he himself knew that deep down, he could never believe it.
Taking a deep breath, he walked out.
I'm all alone…
Hanagata was shocked. Why on Earth did such a thought… how on Earth did such a thought actually enter his brain? And yet… that thought was so… sure.
Something's wrong with me today…
And that was when the darkness hit. It was so sudden that Hanagata gasped aloud. Following the darkness, he heard the screams and shouts. But they sounded odd… muffled. It was like he was momentarily cut off, and whizzed away somewhere, accidentally leaving one part of his brain, and one ear behind.
Seconds later, he heard it, louder and much clearer then the screams coming from the cafeteria. Nearer too.
'Ancestral evil…'
The voice whispered it again and again. Hanagata fell onto his knees, the voice driving him crazy.
I'm all alone. Nobody can help me!
A/N: Okay, not all that good, I know. You know, I was never scared when writing the Terror… fic, but the last part of this chap, for some reason or another freaked me out!!! Probably b'coz I was writing at night… well, I don't want to bore you… so pls REVIEW!!!!!! Thanks a lot!