Ripples in Red Water

Chapter 7: Flowers in the Garden

Part 3

Sprout of Hope

By: Empathic Soul

Disclaimer: Gravitation is a wonderful anime. It is sadly not mine.

PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

Thank you once again to those who reviewed! I really love the reviews! Hehe! Helps me and makes me inspired to write the story again!

Thank you once again! Please read and review and as Ruruouni Sesshouhen remarked: Read with you heart!

Thank you! And please do try and read Education by Professor Tohma and One single action. It was meant to be a refresher for this story!

BE FOREWARNED: This chapter includes angst, drama, and a LOT as in a LOT of violence! Please do read this with care and understanding. Absorb it so that you would get some of the subtle hints for the plot and do so understand the characters as well. Thank you so much!

Shun walked beside his lawyer as they head towards a big building. It, being the building, struck a familiar cord and Shun cannot help but wonder if he had been in this building before. It appeared very accommodating and at the same time intimating, tall and elegant.

He stood beside a taller man with sleek black hair with his bangs covering his right eye. His blood red eyes have always been striking and many people appear to fear this person with Shun. Not to mention that the man appears to be more threatening and frightening.

And this man is his lawyer, Rin Halberd.

To any other person, Rin seems to be cold and stoic. The man rarely smiles and most of the time he even ignores people. But because of his foreign heritage, he got different features, quite different as a matter of fact than normal Japanese. It was only because of his black hair that made him look more Japanese, or slightly Japanese. It was a wonder why this man would actually be inclined to have such interest in his case. But then again, without him, he would still be in jail.

"Shindou! You have a visitor!" The guard called his attention as he sat in the corner of his prison cell. He was simply staring at the wall wondering about the things that happened and keeping quiet.

"Oi! The guard said you have a visitor." His prison cell roommate reinforced. "C'mon, don't deny it this time."

"I…" Shun merely buried his head between his hands and then ignored the guard who looked at him in pity.

Shindou Shun had been there for two years. Actually, investigations in the place of the crime had been done. The guard heard from one of his superiors that there was enough evidence to grant Shun a chance to defend himself.

There were fingerprints, the time, and even the incident itself was a bit dubious, but Shun declined any court trial and the evidence mysteriously disappeared. The court trial that was supposed to be given to Shun was also cancelled and the guard pitied the guy.

He always wondered along with the other people there why he was in jail. He was kind. In fact, he was very kind.

There was a time during his first few days, everyone had to go through some initiation rite in prison. Most of the older and those who had been in prison longer took interest in him.

Shun was a very…

Well, attractive and neat young boy. He was only 19 during his entrance in the prison life. He was so innocent looking and everyone there was looking at him as if annoyed. He was the epitome of a person who lived in grandeur.

So some of the men tried to bully him inside the cell.

But the main event that caused all the people to get respect for Shindou Shun and never bother him again was that one single incident…

"Oi, Shindou! Rich-boy!" The biggest and most violent of all the criminals shouted as they were doing their cleaning tasks. "Come here!"

Shun looked up and one of his new friends tapped his shoulder.

"Don't, don't come near that guy, he'll just be trouble."

Shun merely smiled back and nodded. "I'm not going to do something bad. Don't worry." He proceeded to the big bully named Tasu.

"What is it Tasu?" Shun asked and stared at the man who called his attention.

Shun was surprised to see when he was suddenly punched in the gut and then kicked to the side by one of Tasu's pals. He fell to the ground unable to breathe and grasped his stomach tightly.

Tasu and his group mates laughed at the withering form of Shun. He was on the ground grasping his sides and then trying to breathe. Blood slipped out from his lips and then he coughed out a bit more. He matched to be fairly small, blame the Shindou genes. Although Shun's a bit taller, almost as tall as his father, he was still smaller than Tasu.

"How does it feel Little rich boy? Do you like the floor?" Tasu growled while grasping a fist full of hair and then yanking him up of his position.

One of Tasu's gang members punched Shun on the face and then another kicked him to the side. Everyone in the hall was too frightened to even budge from their position and help the poor guy.

Shun was on the ground and again was yanked up. His breathing was labored and it appeared as if he was going to break into a million pieces because of his current bruised state and bloody clothes.

"What pretty boy, you're not fighting back?" Tasu smirked but he was taken aback when Shun merely smiled towards him.

"I was beaten up by my own sister…" Shun mumbled but loud enough to be heard by almost everyone.

"I was a very irresponsible brother…" Shun continued.

"I lost everything in my life after a single night…"

"I almost killed my most important person…"

"I am here for something I did not do…"

"I am almost at the edge of my sanity…"

"I almost wanted to die…"

"I wanted to die…"

"But…" Shun raised his eyes to meet Tasu's. Tasu was surprised to see a glint of hope and at the same time there was anger and intimidation. It was surprising that amidst the kindness and the soft background, Shun still had a certain dangerous glint in his eyes.

"I am not going to go out the shortcut!" Shun shouted and Tasu was surprised. "I'm taking my punishment and I will not runaway! I will fight and will continue to do so because I believe that I can have my retribution someday."

Tasu glowered at him. "Do you think such a speech would change something!"

"Yes." Shun nodded this time though it was with his smile. "Because I know you're not a bad person Tasu. No one is. Everyone has a reason…"

Tasu stared at Shun.

"And we have an even bigger reason to live." Shun smiled.

"And what could that be? We are rejected by our families, friends, and even our loved ones." One of the prison members replied.

"But, we still have ourselves. As long as we own this body, we have control of our minds, and we have our souls, we can still change and most importantly…we have…" Shun was dizzy with pain and he fell down the ground. "Each…other…we're…family here…"

Everyone stared at the guy and Tasu suddenly leaned forward and carried the boy to the infirmary. It was since that day that Tasu became a peaceful man and helped maintain peace in the prison cell. It was a day of change.

"Oi! Shun! You have a visitor." The guard repeated.

"I don't want to see anyone." Shun replied and then he was surprised when another voice, a new voice spoke.

"You don't have a choice." Rin spoke and Shun raised his head only to be met with stern and yet very determined set of red eyes. "I'm getting you out of here, Shindou Shun."

The man insisted that the police have done not much of an appropriate investigation on the case and immediately assumed that Shun was the one at fault. Rin demanded that the court did not even ask for the statement of the suspect and immediately placed him in jail, accusing him of the crime that he probably did not commit. Rin showed evidences like the knife having two fingerprints, the time of the events, and even narrated the story that Shun told him amidst the complaints of his client.

It was a long battle…

And of course, after all the details and the complaints of Rin, Shun was given the right to bail out and after staying for 7-years in prison, he is finally free…and finally able to experience the freedom that should have not been taken away from him from the beginning.

Though to Shun, who was used to the life of being pampered, life in prison taught him a lot of things. There was pain, and even fear in every move that you make. Everyone in jail was his opponent, though that is probably an exaggeration.

To actually state it fairly, his life in jail was not like the ones that were narrated in the movies. There are a lot of innocent people and actually nice people inside the railings of that cold 'home'. It is awkward to hear the word home associated with the word prison. But to some people, the prison house is to be considered a home, the one place that they were able to make friends, act like who they really are, and most of all people in there can actually relate to their own problems. Psychologically speaking, the prison house helps the criminals cope with their problems, knowing that there are people in there that share the same predicaments.

And that was one of the realizations that Shun learned inside the prison house. He knew that there are also innocent people in there, just like him. Shun did not notice that he's been staring into space and that the two of them have already stopped walking. He blinked his eyes and smiled casually towards the man that stood beside him with a scrutinizing glare.

"I'm alright, Rin, don't worry!" Shun waved his hands towards the black haired man who stared at him unbelievingly, seemingly unconvinced.

"Lawyers to the lying here." Rin reckoned while tucking his hands in the pockets of his long black trench coat.

He's wearing a dark blue button down shirt inside paired with black slacks and leather shoes. He always looked more like a vampire because of his stunning set of crimson ruby eyes and the shine that his black hair exhibits. His hair is merely cut in a short-layered style. It barely reaches below his ears but enough to reveal the single silver cross earring in his left ear.

"I can never get it off my mind at how much you look like a vampire with your eyes." Rin shook his head as Shun smiled. Shun stood beside him and merely smiled. Rin merely snorted and glanced at him only to focus on the road ahead towards the entrance to the building.

"And I can never get it off my mind at how much you smile even though you've suffered so much." Rin argued as he continued to walk.

"Rather smile than scowl." Shun replied expecting a counter attack but received none. He looked at the man in front of him now instead of beside him. Shun felt a bit guilty about the statement he made. "Rin, I'm sorry, I might have hurt you with…"

"Stop that. You shouldn't apologize for everything." Rin scolded while continuing to walk towards the building.

"I'm…" Shun was about to apologize to him again when Rin glared at him.

"Say it again, and I'm really gonna make you sorry." Rin glowered over the smaller man and then saw the other sigh.

"Okay…" Shun smirked. "But it's really freakin' hard to remove a habit."

"There's always no harm done in trying, SHINJI." Rin emphasized on the name Shinji for the man to remember. Shun wasn't used to being called Shinji even though it was him who came up with that new name, Shinji Tsuchiya.

The automatic sligin glass door of the building slid open the moment they stepped on the mats. A girl by the door seems to be alert and looked at them with a smile. The two people looked at her, the blue haired one smiling back and the black haired man simply stared. She acted accordingly with a bow, to receive a respectful bow from the others as well.

"Hello gentlemen, what can I do for you?" She asked with a soft and gentle voice. Her brown hair reaching till her shoulders swayed as the wind from outside the building entered through the open doors.

"We have an appointment with Mr. Hale." Rin answered looking at the lady in front of him, who seem to have taken an awkward step backward because of the intimidating look the man spoke just gave her. She almost wanted to run away, but of course, her job calls her to handle such predicaments.

"Oh, uh…yes…can I get your names, please?" She asked with a slight tremble in her voice. She rushed behind the counter one again heading straight for the computers.

"Rin Halberd and Shinji Tsuchiya." Rin answered while Shun nodded looking around the building with scrutiny trying to rid of the familiar twinge that he is feeling.

"How come this place is so familiar?" Shun wondered. It was quite unusual for him to have been to buildings, not counting the one building he went when he was young, and that's ComSoft Inc., their company when his father was still alive. But…

The girl typed in their names and after just a moment, she smiled back to them and nodded. She printed a sheet of paper where the time and venue was indicated for their appointment.

"Yes sir, I have verified your appointment with Master Hale. But he's in a meeting, currently." The girl gave them the paper that also had their names written and an official appointment slip. "Formalities, sir. I believe your appointment is still at 2:00 P.M. and it's just 1:00."

"We decided to come early." Rin nodded towards the girl not noticing that his companion already went to take a sear by the waiting area.

"I see, well, Mr. Halberd, please take a seat at the waiting area. We would be serving you with some drinks while you wait for you scheduled appointment. Please do not hesitate to ask the maintenance if you happen to need something." She pointed at the set of sofas by the hall with a designated waiting area sign.

"Thank you." Rin bowed towards he direction and proceeded to take a seat across his companion who gazed at the room in awe.

Rin asked for a cup of black coffee and Shun asked for a cappuccino. The silent man just sipped his coffee while the other still looked around the room with a smile plastered on his face. Of course, the other man could not help but notice is as the smile continued to annoy him.

"Your smile is starting to bug me. Can't you even smile as if you mean it?" Rin placed the cup down while he crossed his arms over his chest. The other man looked at him with a serous face but a smile still remained on his face.

"I told you over a thousand times that this is already some sort of defense mechanism. I smile when I feel emotions. It's…" Shun looked up to the ceiling to stare at the crystal chandelier that decorated the entire waiting hall.

"It's a way of protecting yourself and preventing exposure of yourself to other people." Rin continued. "Well, the least that you could do is do it properly. Your smile is obviously forced."

"You know, Rin. You're pretty talkative today. Are you nervous at meeting the president of this company?" Shun asked.

"Vice-president." Rin corrected and the other man shrugged.

"Whatever." Shun looked at him intent in getting an answer. Although he knew that he will only get a grunt as a reply. And as he predicted, only a grunt came. But as experience speaks with how long he's been friends with the lawyer, which happens to be almost most of the time he was imprisoned, a grunt means a yes. 'Why would you be nervous with meeting such a person?"

"I am not." Rin almost wanted to punch the persistent little insignificant speck he calls his friend. It was one thing that he utterly dislikes, and that is a persistent little pest!

"Oh yes you are. Look, I can see you trembling already." Shun laughed at the man who seems to look at him in shock.

"I am most certainly not trembling." Rin looked at Shun and then to himself to actually assure himself that indeed he is not shaking. And of course, he isn't.

"Of course not. I just wanted to start a good and challenging conversation with you." Shun took a sip from his own cup of cappuccino and then settled it down the table once again. "So, what's the name of this place again?"

"Musica Corporations or Studios to some people." Rin took it as one of their question and answer type of conversations. The type they usually engage in. "Vice-president is Sakuya Hale."

Rin did not expect to see that reaction in Shun's face. The blue-haired man suddenly paled and looked at the man in front of him as if he became someone else. Rin could sense fear and anxiety enveloping the character of the man in front of him. His smile darkened as it turned into a shocked expression that Rin took into consideration. Rin uncrossed his arms over his chest and inspected the man once again after Shun returned to his calm façade.

"Explain, boy." Rin ordered and Shun shook his head as if saying "no". Btu a lawyer has to be persistent, persuasive, and damn annoying. And that in sum is what Rin's traits are. "Say it."

"Sakuya Hale is the best friend of my brother, Shuichi." Shun replied with a nervous quiver in his voice. "Rin, I just can't face him. He might…"

"Recognize you?" Then good. It's about time you reveal the real things that happened during that fateful day you decided to play hero." Rin spoke sarcastically as he sipped once more and breathe a sigh of relief because of the warmth that enveloped his body after drinking the warm liquid.

"I can't! You know why I can't! Did you know about this? Is that the reason why you bought me here?" Shun accused, his voice rising in panic and some people are already looking at them.

"Don't embarrass me." Rin warned with a dangerous hint in his voice. "No. I did not know. All I knew was…this was Shinji Shindou's company and technically your company too."

Shun's eyes widened. It was no wonder that the building had a familiar feeling towards him. Although he barely came there when he was young, he still remembered some of the places in the building. However, during that time, it was still a small building and it did not appear as extravagant as this.

Who would actually think that a building that was small would grow this powerful and extravagant in such a short time?

Sakuya is indeed a good businessman, just like Shun had thought at the first moment he met Sakuya.

Who would not remember a boy selling you a cap for 10-dollars. Shun argued that the dirty old cap would cost less than a dollar and selling it for 10 would be outrageous. Sakuya is merely a few years younger than him, and a few years older than Shuichi. Sakuya stubbornly shook his head saying that everything had sentimental value. Therefore, you're not only buying the cap, but you're also…

"…buying the dirt that traveled all over the world, and also the emotions attached to the cap. Not to mention, there is also labor for me to look for someone to buy it and also the profit that I should make. I also have to give Shuichi his own share for it." Sakuya insisted over the older Shun.

"Dirt that traveled all over the world?" Shun rubbed his chin and raised his brow towards Sakuya and Shuichi who grinned at him.

"Yeah! World-class dirt!" Shuichi added and Sakuya nodded with enthusiasm.

"See it's even imported." Sakuya pointed at the cap.

"Imported?" Shun was about to breakdown and laugh. The cap was not imported and he knew that.

"Yes!" the two nodded and Sakuya extended his hand to Shun where the dirty blue cap lay. "It'll also look nice when you wear it."

Shuichi nodded back. Sakuya noticed that Shun was still hesitant. So Sakuya decided to go to his drastic measures.

"Okay, buy this and you get a free song from Shu-chan." Sakuya smirked and Shun's brows raised even more at both the smirk and the bargain.

Shuichi suddenly stopped nodding and stared at Sakuya.

"Hey! We did not agree to this!!!" Shuichi pointed at Sakuya and Sakuya glared at him.

"But we have to sell the cap! We need to advertise or bargain!!" Sakuya pointed out and Shun almost laughed but he did not want to embarrass the two.

"Alright…alright…just stop yapping. I'll buy your PRECIOUS little hat." Shun pulled out a ten-dollar bill and then the two boys ran out of the house and soon came back with bags of snacks and a lot of other toys.

"Sakuya had been really good with money." Shun smiled at the memory and Rin simply nodded in agreement. "But I still don't understand why you came here. Did you really come here to actually introduce me to them and then have me speak the truth?"

Rin smirked and then placed the cup down to look at the man in front of him seemingly demanding for an answer. The lawyer closed his eyes and then muttered a curse under his breath before actually speaking once again. He sighed and opened his eyes to face the man in front of him

"Think whatever you want. I bought you here to do what you want. I came here for my own reasons." Rin replied with a grunt as eh focused on finishing his cup of coffee.

Shun took the opportunity to keep quiet. For once, he did not have anything to say. This meeting would be too early. Although considering that he had already been out of jail for ample, or rather a long time now, he still did not want to show himself to his siblings and to the people who know him.

As much as he wanted to muster the courage to even just smile at them, he could not. It was just not right since he knew the truth and Shuichi knew that he's a killer. He hoped though that Suzu already changed her mind and returned to the realm of sanity.

His thoughts were interrupted when the sliding door opened to reveal the last person that he wanted to see at that moment. It was the person that he did all these for. It was the one person that he swore to protect.

His eyes widened when he saw this very person enter the building with a certain blond novelist, the wife of Seguchi Tohma, and the popular artist, Sakuma Ryuichi.

It was a first.

He was speechless.

He was not aware though…that in this one building all the Shindou siblings are present.

Shindou Shun

Shindou Shuichi

And

Shindou Suzu.

TBC

Thank you very much for reading!

I need a short chapter for this though so I presumed that it was necessary to introduce Shun and the person who helped him attain his precious freedom!

Well I decided to update as soon as possible. I am happy to see that there are reviewers who immediately reviewed my fic as I updated it. So since I was gone...well I really thought it was only a couple of weeks.. hehehe, I decided to add another chapter ASAP. Hehe, see you soon!

tangerine-asuka: I think you know what Yuki said to Shu! Hehe! Thanks for reveiwing!

deppfan1016: hehe, well tadah, this is one fast update as you can see! hehe, it's kind of fun to type when you're having a vacation. And to think I'm becoming really obsessed with finishing this story as soon as possible! Hope I really could before my sem break is over, or else updating would be a dream!

kanilla: Aw shucks! I'm not really the best and I am fully aware of that! But I am so happy that you think my story is worth the time to read! Hehe, it makes the effort of retyping it really worthwhile! Thank you so much and I hope to read more of your reveiws! P.S. You seem really happy when you reviewed! That's great!

MC-88: Hajimemashite na-no-da!!! Hehe, here starts the chapter where all the characters finally meet before the final match! A little more and this fic would be done! hehe! thank you for loving my fic! I am flattered and I really hope that I could read more of your reveiws! See you soon!

wolfie: hehe, wow! thanks for the compliment and nice to meet you! See you in your next review and I hope you continue to read my fic!

Silver on the tree: Hehe, seems like I was really missed...heheh, shucks! not only am I flattered to see so many reveiws instantly as I updated but also seeing my usual reveiwers happy that I came back! I'm so sorry for not reviewing as soon as possible. studies have been in the way...grrr...but then again, we need to study! Oh well, I know Suzu's starting to become bratty and utterly annoying. I was surprised myself when I read my fic. Hehe, I really really needed to do that! Also Shun came out in this chapter because I needed the entire chapter 7 to reintroduce the characters for the finale! It's coming, the end is coming! hehe, well, thank you so much and I als stick to my word that I am flattered you think of me as a good writer! thank you!

Reiannah: hehe, I thought I died too don't worry! I missed your reviews too! I'm so happy to read your reviews to my story as well. It probably took me a long time, I really did not estimate it that way and don't worry, I won't vanish for another month, maybe after my sem break! hehe, since I'm on vacation now, I'm able to type and write more new chapters probably if I'm really really really happy, then I could finish this fic before my break ends. But that's wishful thinking. I saw that you updated too! It's kinda funny that we updated on the same day! Seems I was bribed by the Ramune candy! hehe Thanks again for being a loyal reviewer and thank you so much for helping me!

I love athrun: hehe, long time no hear, thank you and I will!

Mistress of Anime: I love running around the rain too! It makes me feel a bit more at ease as if it was peaceful and all the pain is getting flushed out of your system! Hehe, sorry for the late update! I really tried to write but I was just too busy to do so. And well, I am going to do my best to update as often now since I'm on vacation. I guess Yuki would have a minor character change but not too much to become out of character. Well, see you next review as I try to finish up to chapter 8b. Ciao!!!!