Thanks for all reviews! Alright, now to answer the question asked, no, this story isn't all about Hirumi and Maria. That was just my first chapter. A good few of the original victims will be in these beginning chapters.

"Taeko, I brought Ice Cream," A short man offered a late teenage girl sitting on a swing. He was what many people would call fat, and looking troubled about the girl on the swing.

"Thank you, sir," said the girl on the swing. She had on a white sun hat, and a horizontally striped dress. She took the frozen treat from the outstretched man's arm, and took a few licks. The man sat down next to her.

"It's good, isn't it?" he offered, trying to keep up conversations with his daughter. She didn't know though. Two years ago, she was attacked by Lil' Slugger, and became an amnesiac.

"Yes," she continued. She still looked a little absent-minded after all of the time she's had to recover. She still couldn't remember. Could it be she wished for this herself? Little Slugger seemed to give emotional relief of what a person wanted. Had she wanted to forget? To become nothing?

"I want to forget!" yelled Taeko into the phone. Tears streamed down her face and mixed with the rain. "I want to become nothing!"

Only Taeko knew the answer, and she forgot it. The man looked around, and stared at a billboard for a little while. It read:

Are you misplacing things? When it comes to remembering where your keys are, do you seem to have amnesia? Missing things becoming too much for you? You could be eligible for our study. Contact-

AMNESIA MISSING

Masami Hirukawa stood up, and waited for Taeko to do so, but she didn't, and Masami sat down in turn. Would she ever remember anything? And if she did, would he want her to?

"Local tutor and university professor's assistant and wife Hirumi Chono was attacked last night by an unknown assailant. There were no witnesses, and her husband hadn't seen the attack, so not much is known on this case, or will be, until Hirumi wakes up. In other news-,"

The sound of the TV died as Hirukawa and Taeko passed the TV blaring into the street from a local shop window and continued to their destination. They were going to get dinner at a diner, because that was all Hirukawa could afford at the moment.

The sound of Taeko's footsteps behind him assured him that she was still following. He'd learned that he could trust her enough on her own to walk behind him if she pleased.

Some of the people they walked past stared at Taeko's expressionless eyes and constant smile, but Hirukawa didn't care. Taeko was still alive, and that's all he cared about.

The diner was cheap while still containing good food, and that was good enough for Hirukawa. Taeko seemed not to care, and simply ordered a salad.

"Do you like it?" asked Hirukawa, noticing her only picking at the food.

"It isn't bad," Taeko said honestly, but she looked troubled. Hirukawa cautiously pried into the matter.

"What's wrong?" he asked a little hesitantly.

"I think…" started Taeko, but shook her head, as though dismissing her statement. "You told me I had amnesia right? That's why I can't remember anything?" Hirukawa stared.

"Y-yes," he managed to spit out eventually. "You were attacked two years ago."

"I think," Taeko seemed to be picking up at the thought she abandoned earlier. "I think I knew you before,"

Hirukawa dropped his sandwich, and leaned forward. "What…else do you remember?" he said cautiously. After all, there were certain memories Hirukawa would prefer she didn't remember.

Taeko pushed open the door to her house, and looked around. Seeing no one around, she slinked over towards her father's laptop, and popped it open. She opened the disc drive, and placed a disc in.

"There, it's done!" Taeko said gleefully as a birthday message appeared as the new background. "I wonder if he'll be surprised!"

She noticed a small shortcut half hidden behind the recycle bin.

"Hm?" Taeko clicked on the shortcut. An image of her room popped up on the screen. She stared blankly for a moment before loading the rest of the pictures.

"No, I don't think so," Taeko said finally. Hirukawa resumed eating his burger. "Just that I think I've known you for a long time."

They had finished their meal, and were walking home. It had grown to be dark out, and Hirukawa decided it safer to walk behind Taeko this time.

Taeko walked with her head down, staring at the ground. She seemed troubled about something, and Hirukawa was almost afraid to ask what it was.

Taeko stopped walking.

"What is it, Taeko?" asked Hirukawa. There was a long moment before a dark voice that Hirukawa almost didn't recognize as Taeko's spoke.

"How dare you," growled Taeko. Hirukawa hadn't heard that voice from her since…

"Taeko, you remember everything, don't you?" Hirukawa got to 'remember' before Taeko cut him off.

"Shut up!" She turned to face him with an expression that showed how truly angry she was. "Yes, I remember! Was that your little game? To hope I wouldn't remember what you did? You sick monster. You wanted to start 'a happy father daughter relationship' with me after what you did?"

"Taeko, please!" Hirukawa had broken into a sweat. Taeko wasn't giving him a chance to talk at all. He had thought she'd stop being so angry if the home it happened in was gone. Apparently he was wrong.

"I told you to shut up!" Taeko was starting to yell louder with every word. "I hate you! And don't think I've forgotten what I said! I will make sure that everything that makes you happy is destroyed! I hate you!"

Taeko ran off into the night, and Hirukawa couldn't even move. He managed to slur out "Taeko, wait!" but knew that she wouldn't listen. Taeko was gone again, and this time, she didn't even have a cell phone.

Taeko sat on a park bench, staring into the darkened woods in front of her.

Why did I remember? Taeko thought. Why couldn't I stay as nothing, like I wanted? Her string of thoughts changed.

I hate him. I wish he was gone. I wish he was gone and I didn't have to ever remember him! Taeko's mind raced.

I want to forget! Whoever caused me to forget, where are you? Help me!

Taeko looked up at a rustling in the bushes. Was it him? Was it the man who helped her before?

No. It was just a stupid dog looking for scraps of food.

"I want him dead," she said sullenly, "Whoever made me forget, make me forget him, and make him dead,"

A flyer was stapled to a telephone pole. It read 'Have you seen me?' and enclosed a picture of Taeko with a phone number below.

Hirukawa had stapled these flyers to everything he could, and didn't stop until everything that could be stapled had at least one flyer on it. He had to find Taeko. She meant the world to him now that his wife left him.

She left him a little ways into the reconstruction of Tokyo began. All she kept saying was that he had no job, and couldn't even provide a new home for her. She smiled at Taeko, and left. She never even talked to Taeko again.

Hirukawa needed to find Taeko, and find a way for her to forgive him. If anything ever happened to her, Hirukawa wouldn't want to live in this world.

Hirukawa sat on his couch waiting. No one had called yet about Taeko, but there was still hope. Why wouldn't anyone see her? She wasn't that hard to miss, at least to him.

The phone rang.

Hirukawa immediately jumped up and ran to the phone hanging on the wall.

"Hello!" he practically yelled in the phone.

"Um, yeah, I think I…" Hirukawa could her something like faint laughter in the background, and the caller quieting them. "As I was saying, I believe I saw you daughter. I asked her if she knew everyone thought she was missing and she…"

The caller burst out in laughter.

"I got you so good, old man! You-,"

Hirukawa never heard the rest of his jeering. He dropped the phone on the kitchen floor, and collapsed to his knees.

"Taeko, where are you?" Hirukawa asked quietly, before yelling "Taeko!"

'Have you seen me?'

Taeko read the words over and over again, and stared at her picture. She couldn't believe it. She had told him she hated him, and here he had pasted her face on a piece of paper, copied it a thousand times, and posted it everywhere in sight.

"I…" said Taeko, before here face contorted into an angry expression. "I hate him!" She ripped the piece of paper from the corner down, before staring at the rest of the papers stapled along the entire road. "I hate him!"

Hirukawa stared in disbelief at the spot where his flyer had been. All that remained were scrapes of paper where the staples remained.

He walked up the street at each scrap of paper where a flyer once was, and stopped at where one single flyer remained, but the bottom staple was removed. Hirukawa lifted the piece of paper, and read the message that was clearly meant for him.

I hate you.

Taeko smiled to herself at what she'd done. He had no doubt seen the note she left for him. Did he finally get the fact that she didn't even care remotely for him?

She stared up at the sky, grinning to herself. She finally fell asleep happy on an old mattress in an empty alley.

When she woke up the next day, she walked out into the street, still smiling. Today she would continue destroying his life. She had begun by asserting to him that she hated him. Now she would keep it up. His life must already be getting worse.

She thought this, until she saw the flyer. It was the same flyer, only printed on blue paper instead of white.

"No," she whispered to herself. "Doesn't he get it? I hate him!"

She ran up the street, until she found one white flyer. The one flyer she'd left her message on. She lifted it up, and gasped. Hirukawa had written something in return.

'I could never hate you, and I don't believe that's true,'

"No!" she yelled, and ran down the street.

Hirukawa stared. She had ripped all of the flyers down again, and again, left the one white one.

'Meet me at midnight, under the street light in front of where you live.'

Hirukawa smiled a little. Had she begun to forgive him? All he could do was wait for midnight.

Taeko stared at Hirukawa standing in front of her. He was the one to break the silence.

"Taeko," he began, but Taeko interrupted with a calm voice.

"Shut up," she said. "Don't you get it? How many times do I have to tell you? I hate you!"

"That's not true Taeko, or you wouldn't have even asked to meet me here," Hirukawa said just as calmly.

"Why don't you understand? I hate you! Who would forgive someone who did what you did? I hate you!"

"Taeko," Hirukawa started again, but Taeko didn't let him stop her. She was starting to cry.

"I hate you! Don't you get it? I want you out of my life! I want you dead!"

At the last of her words, Hirukawa realized she meant it. If she wanted him dead, then…

"Taeko," he began. "If you want me gone from your life, I will do it. I'll never talk to you again. Just know, I'm sorry for everything,"

"Die," spat Taeko. And at the end of her words, the sound of rollerblades filled the air. Hirukawa turned around to see a glint of gold, and was laying in a pool of blood in an instant.

The attacker smiled at Taeko, and that's all she could see of his face. His grey sleeveless hooded shirt, the black long-sleeve, Taeko knew he was the one who attacked her two years ago.

His grin grew wider, and he charged Taeko. She hit the ground as he skated away into the night.

Taeko woke up in a hospital. The sun was blinding her from the window. How did she get here? Her head was bandaged for some strange reason.

"Oh, you're awake," said a doctor walking into the room. "I know this is sudden, but I have some bad news.

"What is it?" Taeko asked.

"Your father… took a serious blow to the head," The doctor frowned. "He died on the spot." Taeko stared blankly before smiling.

"I don't know who you're talking about. My mother and I have lived alone for all of my life. I never knew my father."

Okay! End of chapter two! To fans of Tsukiko, I think she might be in the next chapter! Don't worry! She's not the next victim. Please review!