Blood-Stained

A/N: I just finished watching 'Green Dragon'. It was so sad! It's based on the Vietnam War, and at times I wanted to cry. Man, the main character had it bad: pushed around, lost a sister. :( Anyways, here's where the real plot begins. Oh yes, and I'm not exactly the blood/violence/gore type of person. It gives me the creeps, especially if it's depicted really well in movies. So why am I exactly writing a blood/violence/gore fic? Because God decided to give me the ability to think up of wonderful ideas such as those. -_-*

                                                                     Chapter 2 ~ Fine Lines

          She loved her job! Well, maybe that was an overstatement. She liked her job… not exactly. Filing secretary was an O.K. job.

          Aw, what kind of joke is this? It gets as exciting as watching Grandpa take his mid-afternoon nap.

          Kagome wanted to snort out loud; the most exciting phenomenon that happened in her area of 'work' was when the copy machine broke down for mysterious reasons and xeroxed mooning pictures.

          The highest point of my life is a very low point.

          She finished putting the files in alphabetical order and slammed the cabinet shut. This job was going to murder her with boredom. And she definitely needed a change in the environment. There was no way Kagome was going to stay for another month if she was surrounded by coworkers who still laughed and 'ooh'ed at butt imprints on paper.

          "Look… is that a birthmark?" a tall, lanky female asked. She clamped a hand over her mouth and began to giggle, paper shaking in her hand. The guy she was talking to ripped the paper away and examined it closer before starting to laugh along.

          Oh brother….

          Kagome rolled her eyes discreetly before walking out of the room. Just how many copies did the machine produce?

          Probably more than enough to give me nightmares for the rest of my life…. 

          She passed by mindlessly of hundreds of thousands of cubicles. Reaching hers at the end of the countless rows, Kagome promptly plopped into her chair. It just so happened that her cubicle was facing an apartment. It was even better that all the windows of the apartment had no blinds, making every movement inside the place detectable.

          Thank God I've only seen PG-13.

          And Kagome had no intention of seeing past that rating.

                                                                                ~*~*~*~

          Stupid… boss….

          Kagome gritted her teeth while rearranging the folders and copying memos simultaneously. "I.Hate.Bosses," she grumbled, slamming the cabinet with so much force that the table beside it shook a bit.

          Why, oh why, did Boss think that out of all the people working here she would love to do a double shift? How would he know that she would accept the offer? He didn't, because Boss ran out the door before Kagome could protest. Yep, she needed a new job.

          And maybe someone who'll listen to me if they're in charge….

          She grabbed the memos from the machine, almost if mad at it, and stomped out of the room. Marching up the stairs, she entered the fifth floor… and dropped all the copies on to the floor.

          ….

          In the vast office, filled with paintings and spacious surroundings (if compared to her tiny, squished cubicle), sat one desk smack dab in the middle of its glory. That's right, one. Uno, un, mot, whatever language it was, there was one (1) desk.

          Kagome's eye was twitching.

          All that time… and I only needed one copy?!?!

          She dumped every single copy into a trashcan and slapped a piece of paper on the desk. That boss of hers was irritating….

                                                                              ~*~*~*~

          Running into her office, Kagome's watch beeped 11:30 P.M. "Great," she muttered, glaring at the time. "Let's add bags to my eyes."

          She hurriedly stuffed work things into her briefcase and tried to shut off the computer. Sadly, it froze, and she had to wait 15 minutes impatiently.

          Hurry up!

          To pass time, Kagome began to examine her workplace. Computer was centered on table, picture of family was to the right, butt picture… oh never mind. That paper just went down the trash.

          She closed her eyes and wished for the computer to end faster. She thanked God that she wasn't blind for working in the dark for so long.

          I have to buy a lamp.

          Her sight wandered to the world outside this window. The streets outside were deserted. But it was common; Kagome referred to the section of Tokyo as the 'perfect place'. All the children had practically exact bedtimes, and no one, almost no one, was seen on the streets after 11 P.M.

          Ooh, I can't….

          She began to turn her attention towards the computer again, but a sudden movement caught her eyes. Swiveling around casually, Kagome expected a raccoon, squirrel, or something little moving.

          It was the apartment across her cubicle.

          Uurgh… not another makeout… never mind. Light's turned on.

          From her point of view, she saw a young brunette, not much older than her, turn on the dim bedside lamp hurriedly, almost afraid.

          What's she up to?

          Kagome's curiosity overpowered her, and she sat on her chair with interest at the scene. Her computer was long gone shut.

          She observed as the girl began searching around the tiny room, flipping the satin purple bed covers over a few times. Kagome saw how the girl became even more panicky as the object wasn't under the bed and return to the clustering objects lying around the floor.

          Did she lose something?

          Kagome was so involved at inspecting the girl's strange actions that when another figure entered the room, she was surprised.

          Probably a hubby or….

          She froze instantly in the soft leather chair. Her fine hair at the back of the neck stood on its little ends, and a very cold sweat swept throughout her body. Goosebumps prickled all over her skin, and her gray-blue eyes focused on its target: the new figure.

          The 'figure' turned out to be a male, a very menacing one. He had endless tattoos plastered all over his scrawny-looking arms. But those arms were still dangerous, nonetheless. With several piercings and the awful outfit, that added to the appearance.

          Kagome watched, not really liking the newcomer, as the man walked slowly over to the girl. She scrambled off the floor and attempted to run away. It was a futile try; the man brought out an arm and grabbed her hair. With a powerful yank, he forced her to the wooden floor. What made the whole thing even creepier was the smile on his lips that never wavered. His smile and body loomed over the girl, and his mouth moved slightly, speaking. It suddenly occurred to her how escaping was worthless, so she did the next best thing; she screamed. She yelled for three, long minutes, and no one came bolting through the door.

          They can't hear her.

          Kagome's eyes widened, and she found herself scared, as if it was she being threatened. The girl was in a terrible abusive relationship!

          Oh my God….

          The man bent down and picked her up by the collar of the shirt. Then, he released her quickly and grabbed her on both sides of the shoulders, and he shook her. He continued, even after the girl stopped shouting and started crying. Kagome could only make out from the girl's moving lips, "Stop. Stop!"

          Strangely, he did after a moment. It seemed as if he was going to leave her alone. But the smile….

          As if in a silent movie, his hand drew back and curled into an iron-like ball. In slow motion, it came forward and found its way to the girl's face. She would have probably been sent flying against the wall, but the man's other hand gripped behind her neck. Then, the slow motion ended and it happened at regular speed. Her head snapped back, and it lolled backwards. Kagome believed the girl was dead for a moment; the head and neck were at an odd angle.

          To make matters worse, the man pummeled, each time with more brute force, the girl's face until it was hardly recognizable. Her bleeding, split lips, swollen eyes, purple cheekbones, bleeding nose, serious gash across her face….

          Kagome's grip tightened around the armrest.

          The man finally released the girl some five minutes later, and she crumpled to the ground. He brushed past her, searching for something in the closet. She was trying to breathe, but it wasn't working easily. Finally giving up and breathing through her mouth, she turned around to see what the man was doing. Her mouth moved to speak.

          No!

          He held a pistol, aimed at her forehead. The girl tried to scramble off the floor and away from shooting range, but he shot one bullet into her left calf, immobilizing her. One down, three more body parts….

          And the man did just that. In three more bullets, the rest of her legs and arms were about as helpful as a chicken running around without a head. He loomed over her once more and grinned. It was disturbingly happy, like he gained a personal achievement.

          The guy pressed the pistol to her forehead, smiling and laughing quietly while the brunette cried. He spoke once more, lips still moving slightly. Then he gave a little wave and pressed the trigger.

          Right there at the moment, Kagome's world stopped. Her heart stopped, her breathing stopped, the bullet stopped, time had stopped itself.

          H-he killed….

          Things resumed as the bullet seared viciously through the girl's head, tearing bloody chunks along the way. When the bullet made way out of her, she was dead. A cold, lifeless, bleeding corpse. Blood sprayed onto the bedroom window, floor, man, everywhere. Slumping to the ground, the brunette lay on the floor, unfocused eyes looking out the window. And at Kagome.

          The man laughed and began kicking the body in the ribs. Still laughing, he sauntered up to the table next to the bed and began rifling through its content leisurely. Once he found his prize, a bag containing a white substance, he stuffed it into his pockets, and resumed to his delighted activity. Suddenly, he stopped and froze for a second. Turning around, the man stared out the window along with the brunette. He stared at the work building. He stared at a certain cubicle, where a certain person was watching the entire thing.

          Kagome wanted to draw back sharply, but stopped herself.

          Me no buy lamp.

          But she felt nervous as the man kept gazing.

          He can't see me; I'm wearing all black.

          She stilled her body, not daring to breathe even. The man looked onwards for another good 20 minutes before finally releasing it and smiled. He walked over to the corpse and placed his hands into the puddle of blood still coming out of it. Standing up, he glided eerily over to the glass window; he began inscribing.

          Kagome still didn't move; she dug her nails into the armrest and watched the man with flickering eyes.

          Once he was done, he backed off to look at his artwork; Kagome's breath was knocked out of her and her insides turned into jelly.

          I SEE YOU.

          The lamp was turned off, showing he left the room. But she stayed, not wanting to leave. On the glass, the words were running.

                                                                                       ~*~*~*~

          That night, Kagome didn't come home. She made the best use of an upright chair and a cold table.

          I'm not going anywhere tonight.

          She peeked out of the window every minute, hoping he would visibly exit the building. It looked as if the man had left; he was nowhere to be seen. Yet, Kagome refused to take chances; she had to see him leave.

          Maybe the message was directed to the pigeons or something. After all, many psychotic killers are like that: crazy, lunatic, people who talk to inanimate objects, like shoes….

          Somehow, she'd manage to convince herself with that story. Throughout her painful night, she had nightmares about the event.

          Morning came just as she shut her eyes, and a cheery voice chirped, "Ka-go-me!"

          "Huh? Wha…?" she sat up quickly and looked around wildly. Her neck cracked at the quick movement, and she winced. "Ow…."

          Kagome straightened up a bit and turned when her name was said again. "What?"

          "Oh, you didn't sleep inside the building again, did you? 'Cuz you look terribly awful. Not to mention wrinkly," the woman stated, scrunching up her nose for effect.

          Kagome started thumbing through blank papers, playing with the hem of her skirt, anything to keep her hands busy. If it weren't for mindless distractions, the hands would've magically appeared around the woman's neck and tightened.

          "No, I was just staying up all night," she replied casually. Well, it was part of the truth.

          "Doing what?" the woman prodded.

          God, this woman was nosy! But Kagome was going to have to fend the woman off herself. "Gee, I was disco dancing with Boss in the middle of the lounging room. Whaddaya think?"

          The woman 'hmmph'ed and looked down at Kagome with a glare. "You don't have to bite my head off just because I'm asking you several questions. Here are the files you need to run off copies for," she said, thrusting all the papers onto Kagome's lap before bounding down the hallway.

          Kagome stared at the files with a blank face.

          I hate my job and salary.

          She looked through them, giving off negative comments now and then. She stopped at one particular file and skimmed the contents with an incredulous look.

          They need a whole meeting to discuss about the window frame possibilities?!?!

          "We want peach-colored border frames… wait, make that eggshell," Kagome mimicked under her breath, not believing what she just read. The file about windows suddenly reminded her of something familiar, and she froze, her back against the apartment.

          It was real.

          Kagome didn't want to believe it, that she was the first and last witness to the brunette's death. She didn't want to turn around, didn't want to see the body lying on the floor, feeling the dead eyes boring a hole into her. But she knew what she saw, and her body automatically turned around for another look. It was as if it was telling her to grip reality and its events.

          Her eyes widened into mini saucers, and the files fell to a clatter on the floor. Her mouth opened and closed, yet no noise was made.

          The window was streak-free.

           No blood, words, or even dust! With a closer look inside the apartment, she saw that the body wasn't there. And the pistol wasn't, either.

          Wha….

          "Kagome, are you OK?" one of the employees asked while passing by.

          "Um…" she shook her head for a second, "when you came to work, did you happen to see anything… I dunno, weird in that home over there?"

          The employee shook her head slowly, giving Kagome a confused look. "Can't say. I pass by that building underneath the floor, not above. Besides, I work on the other side of this building. Anyways, from the view here, it looks like everything's fine."

          "Oh."

          So it was just a dream! But it was so vivid and colorful….

          Stop it, Kagome! It was a nightmare, and only a nightmare. Most of the ones you have are supposed to be reality-like. They are supposed to be conjured from the depths of your worst fears…. I guess mine is being blown in the forehead.

          Kagome nodded at the explanation and her posture visibly relaxed. All that time, and it was just in her head! "I'm never working double shift again!" she pronounced, smile returning to her face.

          The entire day, she was in a chipper mood, not losing patience when the klutzy intern spilled cold coffee all over her outfit. It was dirty anyways. When her boss sought after her to talk about tonight's shift, she yelled abruptly, "No!"

          Boss looked at her funnily, and Kagome berated herself for shouting. "Um… I mean, you see, last night I tripped… um, over the stairs, so I… I have a phobia… for climbing to the fifth floor! And… er… I can't go past the fourth floor… er, which is here!"

          He shrugged and ran off, seeking new people. He found the klutzy intern to do it.

          Around 7 P.M., she packed up and headed for home. "Going now!"

          Walking quickly out of her work place, Kagome hailed a cab and directed the driver to her apartment. "Thanks," she mumbled, stumbling out of the car. Who can blame her for being exhausted? She slept on top of a stapler, after all.

          She climbed wearily up the five floors, making sure to keep to the right. And when Mrs. Takadomo dropped another priceless lamp, she kept trudging along, ignoring the rude comments made by her landlord.

          Yes… home sweet home.

          As Kagome entered her apartment, she suddenly had this tingling sensation. It freaked her out because usually when she had these little senses, it meant that something surprising was going to happen.

          And shocking it was.

          She placed her briefcase on the couch and walked into the kitchen for a snack. Sometimes, habits can be hard to overcome.

          She halted to a stop.

          More… blood….    

          The table had blood splattered across it like a painting. Dried blood was all over the chairs. The refrigerator was the worst; handprints were smeared all over it. Even more was a small but visible dent located just below the handle of the fridge. Had it not been for her refrigerator, Kagome would've assumed that some sloppy painters visited her apartment.

          Just like the nightmare….

          Suddenly, she felt sickened to her stomach. And the stench wasn't helping.

          She turned away, prepared to bring out Windex and paper towels to clean up the mess, but something else- near the floor- caught her eyes. Turning around, she looked at the lower kitchen cabinet and stifled a scream.

          The blood was running.

          This is not good. Not good!

          Kagome backed away from the cabinet, clutching her sleeves tightly. Where did all the blood come from? How did it get here?

          She felt something warm and liquid dribble down her neck. Jumping away, she swatted at her neck rapidly.

          Water…?

          As she pulled back to examine the assumed water, her face contorted into surprise. The liquid wasn't water, unless red food coloring was added to it. It suddenly occurred to her just what the discovery might be, and she didn't like it.

          No….

          Almost afraid to what she would see, Kagome raised her eyes slowly to the top kitchen cabinet.

          Her eyes met Mr. Tsuyo's head, and she let out the held scream.

          Mr. Tsuyo was propped up against the wall, staring straight ahead. His forehead held a small, see-through hole. His hair splashed around him, and they were soaked, showing little of his naturally white mane.

          The base of his neck was jarred and jagged, showing some pink, nude flesh. Indication showed it wasn't a very clean cut. Blood was oozing from his decapitated head and gently rolled down the cabinet.

          The worst thing about the head was his stare. Truth be told, it wasn't even a stare. He had no eyeballs; from the looks of things, they were carved out with some sharp object. The limp nerves that were supposed to be attached to his eyes were hanging out of his lids. His eyes were still bleeding.

          The message….

          Kagome turned away, not wanting to stare at part of Mr. Tsuyo's corpse. There was no way she was going to clean his head.

          OK, breathe. There is no way that the crazed murderer who was here will get me. What are the chances of that?

         She walked carefully over to the sink, prepared to take a long drink of water. As she did, her knee bumped against the cupboard beneath the sink. It sounded with a dull thump, and her attention snapped to that at once.

          It's supposed to sound hollow…. 

          She unlatched the hook slowly, and the weight of the object gave and tumbled out.

          Actually, they were objects.

          Screaming in terror, Kagome ran backwards as Mr. Tsuyo's body parts fell onto the middle of her kitchen, hacked into pieces. Two pairs of arms… wait, two?!?!

          Then a girl's head rolled out somewhere amidst the flesh. It was very brief before it was covered with more arms and legs, but Kagome saw it.

          She ran smack into the top kitchen cabinet, and Mr. Tsuyo's head tumbled off, rolling and leaving a trail of blood along the way. It fell besides her, brushing her arm slightly.

          Crying, she scrambled out of the room and slipped on a pool of blood. She cried even more as she fell and hit her knee in an odd position on a chair. Getting up again, Kagome limped to the phone to dial the police's number.

          There was no way she was going to be able to figure this out on her own… how two people's body parts were splattered all over her room, how the apartment across from her work didn't have any signs of blood or pistol.

          A little noise caught her attention; she whirled around to see who was there. At the same time, something hard and cool connected with her head, and she felt pain shoot throughout her head.

           Then the hurt was gone, and she felt tired.

          Nap might be nice….     

           As Kagome dropped to the floor and closed her eyes willingly, she thought she heard a distant gleeful voice speaking.

*

*

A/N: *cough* Well, what do you think? Yeah… I'm trying my best to make you squirm just a teensy bit. If you were feeling a bit nauseous for one second, I'm happy with that! Hehe…. No, I'm not a crazed killer and I'm not depressed. I just get wonderfully twisted ideas. Oh… this will be the only all-violent chapter, too, I think. ^_^ The rest of the characters will be introduced in the fourth chapter, too.

Next chapter: Starting Over