Hey- Normal talking
Hey- Kazuto's inner monologue
'Hey'- People thinking
(Hey)- Inner circles mean places or time skips
~Flashback~
{Queue Song: "Everybody lies- Jason Walker & Oceans- Hillsong UNITED"}
She didn't understand the working inside the world. Why is it that some children get to have a life full of love and adoration while others had to hold on to that small silver lining people call hope in order to try and find happiness? Most adults say that life is full of challenges and that all the hardships they had to endure all plays out into mysterious ways. It's how the world functions. Shino Asada knows full well how the world works, but that doesn't mean she understands it. As many others see the world black and white, she only gets to see it in the color that had taken her hopes and dreams away like the wind does to the sand. That stupid, idiotic, velvety red color should only be that. A color. But for her, it's the color she wears throughout her life.
"Mama! I really hope to taste the ramen you promised me after this trip." a little girl smiles brightly in elation.
"We will. Don't worry honey." the mother giggled.
It should've been an easy trip. Get her mother's check in order to buy the ingredients to make her favorite food: ramen. Just a simple day and yet…
"Everybody freeze! Put your hands in the air and start piling the money!" a man shouted with barely restrained bloodlust.
...it turned chaotic in a couple of seconds. Were the gods playing a sick joke on her? Their day was going great. 'A bit too great i presume' Shino thought bitterly.
"Mama? What is the man doing? I'm scared mama…" the little girl whimpered.
"Shh. Don't talk sweety...it'll be fine." she assured with a fake smile.
'But it wasn't' Shino frowned.
"Hurry up with that money! Don't you dare press the button or I'll shoot her!" the man shouted as he pointed the gun at the mother daughter duo.
"Now now, calm down sir…" the banker tried to appease the robber with lulling words but to no avail as a bullet was lodged into his skull.
"Anyone else want to talk!? I'm starting to lose my patience!"
He ignored the duo as her mother tried to make their exit as soundless as possible in order to not get caught in the crossfire. It didn't work.
"And where the fuck do you think you're going!?" the man sneered as he backhanded the mother to the floor. The little girl looked on with fear and hatred. She swore to make the man pay. It's all in a matter of timing. When she saw him point the gun at her mother, she acted.
"Gah. Damn brat! Get off me!" he shouted as the girl bit his hand without letting go.
When she landed on the floor, the man was holding his arm in pain while his gun clanked on the floor near her.
"Fuck! I swear I'll make you pay you brat!"
He lunged at her petite form with such resentment that she completely ignored the fact that she held the gun and was gripping it tightly. Even if she did, there was no doubt that she would end up doing the same thing regardless. And so…
*BANG. BANG. BANG*
...the sound of bullet shots resounded throughout the store. There was utter silence save for the gurgles of a dying man. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was the man spit blood in her face as a last act of vengeance. It will forever taint her life. It will forever haunt her.
"Go...to...hell...you...brat."
It will forever change her life. Just looking at the fear her mother held, not for her safety but for what she had done, will break her little by little.
"M..mama? Are you hurt?" she asked with a broken voice that it made the woman shudder in hidden disgust.
"I-i'm fine." the woman shrunk away, as if scared she'd be shot too.
'You didn't even pretend to care…' Shino cried. 'You left soon after. Did I really do something wrong? Tell me...why...why…why did you leave me? Mother...'
The broken girl cried and cried herself to sleep into the dark abyss that she knew was her only safe haven. She won't be judge here, couldn't be judged for the actions a daughter had to uphold in order to protect the only family she had left.
After all, what good was all that money she left if she wanted nothing to do with her? Her own flesh and blood, left to dry like a puppet plucked free from its strings. Utterly useless and emotionless to the world.
As the years grew by, the little girl grew up not knowing the warmth of a mother nor the lingering mending of a father wanting the best for her. No, she reminded herself, not for her. Never for her. She didn't deserve such pleasantries. It was her burden to bare, no one else. What good would it do anyway? Wishing for something she knew she would never grasp even in her dreams.
Instead, the girl grew to create a heart of steel and wits of poisonous blood to avoid the eyes. She wish she didn't have to, but it was her way of life. Her mother was gone, but did that mean the gods weren't done torturing her? Far from it. Everywhere she went, the people would direct their gazes to her in both fear and disgust. Did they ever stop to think that she was just the victim of the whole ordeal? That she didn't want to harm anyone? Yet, they never did. She was scorned, feared and presented on a silver platter as a pariah, an irregularity. And so, she stopped caring. Little by little, the girl grew to despise the world and its people. What right did they have to throw conspiracies and judge who was the victim and who was the criminal as if they themselves were the rulers of the world? They weren't all innocents either. It was within human nature to hate and she knew it. In the end, she decided to stand her ground and put her back against the world before it got the chance to stab her in the back with satisfaction.
The little girl grew and grew into a strong woman that didn't take kindly to the gestures of those she deemed as worthless to mock her. In the starting of classes, she transferred schools two times due to the people's transgressions. Did she care? As if! Such things were beneath her. It didn't mean that the jabs didn't hurt any less... all the taunts about her and how her parents left her due to her being a cold blooded murderer. What could she say? That it wasn't true? That her mother, the only person keeping her standing in this godforsaken planet, didn't walk away from her without so much as batting an eye? No, she couldn't. That's why it made her hate the world even more. But then, she was able to find that small silver lining she had wished for for so long…
Kyouji was his name. The boy was odd and she knew it. He always plastered on a mask when he was with her. She hadn't called him out on it for the simple fact that he was the only one that saw her as a human being instead of the 'cold blooded murderer' she was labeled as. It became more apparent when he brought up a game called "Gun Gale Online" that featured the same gun as the man that caused the whole debacle in the first place. It would help her in getting rid of her fear of guns. No one knew of her phobia besides him anyway. Most people avoided her as if she herself was the plague and they, the self righteous survivors that must do everything in their power to do just that: survive. Kyouji was different. He didn't taunt her, didn't joke about her killing him, didn't fear her, and, most of all, saw her as any other person. She had seen how many people thought he was crazy for hanging out with a killer but he didn't care. Of course, the world wasn't all rainbows and butterflies as many would presume. Every person, no matter how much they would want to deny it, had their own agenda. Even Kyouji, who thought was slick enough to avoid being caught, was held at arm's length from Shino in order to avoid being taken advantage of.
This angered him greatly. In spite of the small shred of humanity he held at bay, the voice of the devil whispering sweet nothings was too much of a temptation that he bit the forbidden fruit. He had told Endou, the most popular girl in school, about her secret. In hindsight, Shino should have seen this coming as she was always on her toes when she met with Kyouji since he felt like a walking landmine. If only she were more cautious, she would have figured out her folly sooner and would've tried harder to at least humor him some more. After all, it wasn't much as stringing him along through his wishes as it was trying to save the little light she had left in her bleak world. Regardless, Endou had found out and her new world of torture began.
"Where do you think you're going?" she would say with that sardonic smirk as someone who had found a leash to make their unbinding dog yield to her demands.
If she were to be honest with herself, that's how she felt.
"Where's the money you've promised me? Aren't we both great friends?" the viper would always spit her ire without much hesitation.
But what was she to do? No one would give her the light of day or even come to her rescue lest they be turned into a target as well. But really, who would help her? No prayer had been answered for so long that she didn't care anymore. She became Endou's personal slave. if she so much as looked at her wrong, she would just point with her finger with a loud BANG that it would leave her scurrying. It sounded pathetic, and indeed it was, but it was her life now. She had no friends, no parents, and no help when it came to her pleads. And so…the girl known as Shino Asada endured.
Imagine her surprise when the witch had brought her wannabe gangster boyfriend with her in order to play with her 'little Shino' by roughing her up and showing her her place.
"Come on Shino." the witch cooed. "I just need all the money you're carrying with you right now, no biggie. Why don't you just hand it over?"
"Why should I do that Endou?" she said with venom. "Can't your boyfriend pay for you? Or is he as much of a helpless case as the girl with daddy issues?"
"Why you-" Endou started with her face turning red in repressed anger.
"Why don't you just shut up and do what you're told Asada?" the man said cooly with a smile. "Who knows? You might end up on my saving grace good enough that I might take you out some time." he inspected her figure with those disgustingly blue eyes that held a hint of hostility in them that it was no wonder he ended up with Endou of all people.
"I'd rather die than be your plaything Chris." she snapped at him in disgust.
"Isn't that what you already are to my sweet Endou? A simple lap dog that she has at her beck and call? Might as well take advantage of her generosity and save her the trouble." he said with a voice as smooth as honey but as deadly as a wasp. People always said that there is a price to pay for beauty after all. He might seem cute with that fair skin, dark hair and blue eyes, but he was just as disgusting as any other person wanting to do harm.
"No thanks." Shino replied coolly. "Even I have standards. You don't even start to fit the bill. Not by a longshot."
"Haha. Always the sharpshooter eh Shino? It's no wonder Kyouji walked out soon after." he mocked with a cruel smirk as he saw how her eyes held a tint of hurt at being reminded of her mistake on trusting that man.
"Hmph. I'm just surprised he stuck with you for so long." Endou continued with a smirk. "Perhaps the little dog gave herself off to him in order to keep him. After all, what else would you expect from a murderer?"
"Tch. Of course!" Chris guwaffed as he put his hand on his face. "Why didn't i think about that? You're pretty smart babe." he smirked viciously.
"Oh spare me." Shino spat. "I said I won't give you the money and you could go die in a ditch for all I care."
As Shino turned around to try and walk away, her ears heard the sound of a gun being coked back behind her back. At the sound, she stiffened like a statue.
"Now now, you can't just walk away without being told to do so. That's just rude." Chris shook his head in mock indignation. "Turn around and look when you're being talked to." he said coldly as he saw her turn around slowly, loving the way her boy shook in fear at the sound.
"That's a good girl." he grinned with authority. "See how easy it all is? Ha! Like a trained mutt. Alright, sit down you bitch."
Shino swallowed her pride and did as she was told. 'Anyone with half a brain would do the same' she told herself to try and salvage as much dignity as she could from being struck as a leashed dog.
"HAHAHAHA! How pathetic can you be!?" Chris laughed uproariously. "Ha! No wonder dear mommy left you!"
Shino was livid. How dare he!? She stood up and tried to hit Chris as hard as she could. Making fun of her is one thing she could ignore, but bringing that woman into the conversation was crossing the line. Sadly, she couldn't make it more than three steps before she was backhanded to the floor with a loud thud. If Shino wasn't shaking with fear and anger, she would have laughed at the cruel irony. Here she was, the strong willed Shino Asada, in the same position as her mother during the bank incident: helpless on the floor staring straight at death itself awaiting its final verdict.
Was this how the woman felt? If so, Shino thinks that she might forgive her mother a bit. Just a tiny bit. So, here Shino Asada lay to the sins that were placed on her by the world itself. She stared in defiance at her would-be torturer when he walked strode forward with an air of arrogance of someone who knew held the advantage. That defiance left as soon as it came when he shot a bullet close to her ear. It then led to a piercing scream that roared through the heavens.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
"HAHAHA! Yes! That's it! Scream for me!" Chris laughed maniacally as Endou started to cling to him with a smirk in order to hide her fear.
'He missed on purpose' her mind was trying to convey to the petrified girl. 'He was only taunting you! Get a hold of yourself! Come on yo-'
"Seeing people like you taking advantage of a defenseless person always makes me sick." said an unknown assailant with a voice as cold as ice that it made Endou break out in a shivering mess.
"Hm? And who might you be?" Chris inquires blandly.
'Go away.' Shino pleaded. 'Leave this has nothing to do with you! I don't want more dead bodies piled onto my name!'
"Does it matter?" the guy with black hair and same colored eyes snarled coldly.
"Maybe." Chris shrugged without a care. "Besides, why would you care about her anyway? She's nothing but a murderer." the teen asked with his voice dripping with disgust as he looked at Shino.
Said girl just tried her best to shrink into herself to ignore the confrontation. 'Leave me alone. Please.'
"A murderer? The only thing close to it is you buddy. So, drop the gun and leave her alone." the guy said monotonously. He ignored Chris' smile completely but not Shino. She saw the way his face contorted into a snarl and it scared her.
"Look man. You seem cool so I'll give you one last warning. Walk away now, lest you get shot."
"I'll take my chances. But really, thanks for the concern."
"Wait Chris! We were just going to intimidate her, not actually kill anyone." Endou said as she backed away from him in shock and fear.
'That's bullshit and you know it.' Shino glared at her.
"Are you serious? That was all you wanted to do? I'm practically cleaning the streets from trash. You should be thanking me!" Chris turned to Endou with a snarl.
'What is he doing?' Shino wondered as she saw the guy with coal black eyes pick up a pipe.
"Why don't you just leave them out of this? It just makes you seem feeble minded." he said from his side.
"And why should I listen to you!?" Chris snarled.
"You don't really have to." he shrugged carelessly. "It's just that pointing your gun menacingly at two defenseless girls makes you seem less of a man." he finished with a smirk.
"Well, in that case..." Chris had his finger on the trigger. "...die for me yeah?"
In a swift motion, Shino saw the guy repel the bullet with the metal pipe as Chris looked on in shock.
"Seems like you missed." he mocked with a cold smirk.
"What the hell!?" Chris exclaimed as he stepped back in shock.
The shock was short lived as he kept on pulling the trigger to the point that he wasted his whole mag.
Shino covered her ears the best she could to avoid hearing that deadly sound.
Kazuto was knocking the bullets off course at inhumane speed that the viewers were awed at the display. Shino had long since stopped covering her ears when the sound of bullet piercing flesh was missing. Chris, however, was far from amazed. Instead, he stepped back in fear as he saw him approach at a calm pace.
"Don't screw with me!" he shouted. "What the hell are you!?"
When he saw the man getting closer, Chris failed to notice that he was backed in a corner, both metaphorically and physically.
"Shut up" the guy brought down the pipe in a swift motion and knocked Chris out.
When she saw the guy come close to her, it took Shino all her willpower not to scream or pull back. There was something about his eyes that quelled her fears. She felt something she had long thrown away resurface tenfold: hope.
"Hey." he said softly with that soothing voice, almost in a whisper. "You okay? He didn't hurt you did he?"
All Shino could do is shake her head as her throat had long since dried up.
"Hey Alice, can you call the police?" her black haired savior asked the incoming figures.
"On it!" the blond haired girl said as she directed Endou a sharp glare.
'Ha!' Shino thought with a small amount of satisfaction.
"She's okay right?" the youngest of the group asked, worry etched on her face.
"Yeah it seems so." her savior said with a smile.
'He...he saved me.' Shino thought with surprise as she glanced at her savior's smile as well as the worried faces of the others. 'Why?'
"Why did you save me?" she couldn't help but whisper while barely willing herself not to breakdown and cry in relief.
"Should I have stayed there and watch the events unfold?" he inquired with a soft smile that made her cheeks flush a light pink despite the situation. "Besides, I don't believe you deserve this." he finished with a frown.
At that, she felt her breath hitch. If he were to find out about the events in her life, would he look at her in disgust just like everyone else?
"Hey are you alright?" he questioned worriedly as he saw her start to hyperventilate.
Shino couldn't answer as her world started to darken.
(Fuyuki Central: General Hospital- Few hours later)
Light, black eyes fluttered open as she took in the sight of white walls around her.
'It must have been a dream' she thought with mild disappointment. How could it not? It's not like if she deserved any type of kindness anyway. Not afte-
"Oh! You're awake!" a nurse said cheerfully. "That's great! Wait until your friends hear about this!" she smiled with excitement as she went to fetch her 'friends'.
'So it wasn't a dream.' Shino thought with a small smile filled with joy.
A knock was all the warning she got before the door was flung open by a fully grinning black haired girl.
"You're okay!' the chibi chirped. "Told you my big brother was the best Alice!" she stuck her tongue out at the now known blond.
"Yeah yeah." the blond rolled her eyes playfully as she looked Suguha. "That still doesn't excuse you from barging into the room without knocking first Suguha. Anyway, how do you feel?" she tore her eyes away from the scolded girl to her with worry filled eyes.
"I'm fine." Shino replied curtly as she tried to avoid looking at her. 'As fine as a murderer could feel anyway…' she thought bitterly.
"That's good.' the blond sighed in relief. "Kazuto is going to be happy knowing this!" Shino raised a brow at the name. "Oh right...that's the name of the ravenette that helped you. He and Eugeo went to buy some snacks in case you were to wake up."
"I'm back Alice!" Eugeo chirped. When the girls turned to look at the voice, they saw him being caught in a headlock courtesy of Kazuto.
"What did you do now…" Alice exclaimed in exasperation as she went to rub her forehead.
"Oi! I didn't do anything! I just-" Eugeo was cut off mid sentence when Kazuto tightened the headlock with a twitching brow.
"That's the exact reason why I have you in a headlock you idiot! You doing anything since you were zoning out." he then whispered silently into his ear. "Wait till Alice hears about your daydream.." he finished with a smirk.
When Kazuto released Eugeo, everyone present saw his face go pale and then turn an inhumane shade of red that they were worried he had caught a cold out of the blue. As Kazuto laid his eyes on Shino he beamed with a great intensity. Eugeo was shocked since he had only seen Kazuto smile like that on special occasions. Most of the 'special occasions' consisted of Eugeo being beat within an inch of his life for calling said person old that. That aside, his smile was so bright that it brought color to Shino's cheeks as well as knowing smiles from Alice and Suguha. How interesting...
"You're fine I see. That's a relief." he smiled with such a radiance that it took Shino's breath away.
"Y-yes. I-i'm fine. Thank you for asking." she managed to stutter due to her heart skipping a beat.
It didn't last too long as it froze up by his next question.
"May I ask, why was that guy assaulting you?" he inquired with a frown. "From the looks of it, the events seems so practiced that it almost feels like a regular occurence."
Shino's only response was to start panicking.
'Oh no.' she thought frantically. 'What do I tell them!? I was too caught up in the moment that I forgot to come up with a convenient lie! Think Shino! Think.'
"The pair you saw me with were just my tor-bullies that try to provoke me the best they can. It happens regularly that hardly care what they try to do at this point." she lied perfectly. Kazuto was able to catch her slip up but chose to not pressure her on it. She was going to say torturers wasn't she? If so, why?
"So it does happen regularly." Alice acknowledged with a frown. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Don't worry about it. Like I said, I don't really care what they do to me." she replied curtly. It was her way of life anyway.
"But that makes it even worse!" the kid besides Kazuto replies with teary eyes. "You shouldn't be used to people doing you harm! That's mean." she sniffled.
"It's sickening that's what it is." Eugeo replied with a frown. "People flaunting their superiority freely over others through intimidation." he tightened his fist.
"Regardless of this, you seem like a strong girl Shino." Kazuto said with a grin. "Many people would cower in fear and do as they were told without much thought." Seeing her about to deny his claim, he continued. "You, in this case, had a sense of defiance regardless of the danger. Some people may call this suicidal, but I consider it endearing for a person to try and put on a brave front even in the face of danger. That's what makes you strong."
'But I'm not!' she replied in her mind. 'I was scared. I still am! Of that gun, of that man…'
"Why did you save me?" she whispered silently while looking at the floor.
"This again?" he asked with a raised brow. "It's because i saw someone in need of help."
"But why!? You don't even know me! And yet, you threw yourself in danger just to help me!" Shino shouted with tears cascading down her eyes. "Why did you do it huh!?"
He only smiled gently at her as he went to hold her hand. She only flinched at the warmth of his hand in her own and didn't try to pull away.
"It's because I saw the pained look in your eyes. It wasn't your fault was it? You were the victim in this whole fiasco that's all." he smiled kindly. "Anyone of us would do the same." Somehow, his eyes were more telling. It was as if he wasn't only talking about her being attacked by Chris.
Shino was finally able to glance. Truly glance at the face of the people who only smiled at her with warmth and no sense of hostility.
'If they were to find out what you've done, they would leave your side you know?' a voice whispered in her ear. 'How do you know this isn't just a trick? A ploy to make you lower your guard only to get hurt again? You can't trust them.' It continued to taunt her. For a second, Shino was about to comply with the voice and break away from Kazuto's warm embrace. Would this truly end up hurting her?
"He's right you know?" Alice stepped up with a sweet smile that made her break away from her train of thought. "We would all try to help out. It doesn't sit well with me knowing that many people are hurting. If I knew how to protect them, I'd gladly do it."
"Same here." Eugeo and Suguha said with such confidence that it made Shino shed small tears.
"But what if...what if I'm not what you think of me?" Shino asked in a small voice filled with a flood of emotions. Seeing their confused looks, she decided to take a shot at the dark while trying her best to not blurt out her secret. "What if I'm just some awful person that ends up doing more harm than good? What then?"
"Honestly?" Kazuto started out with a look that shouldn't be possible for a fourteen year old to have. "Everyone deserves a second chance no matter how heinous the crime may be. As long as they try hard to redeem themselves, they would be good in my book. What do you say, want to give it a try?" he finished with a smile unlike none other that seemed to illuminate her bleak world.
It fell second in comparison to Shino's bright smile full of hope. Maybe, just this once, she will be able to truly end up happy. Just looking at the bright smiles of those around her was able to quell down her fears. Fears of the future, fear of life, and fear of being alone.
And so, the girl known as Shino Asada was able to smile once more. I hope you're watching me grandfather. Watching how I'm upholding that promise I made during my visit to your grave once i had joined the Underground. The promise to help those that are lost and in need of guidance just as I once was. As for you, Eraser, I promise the same vow regarding your dream of being a true hero of justice. For now, I'm looking forward to the future Shino herself will carve.
