Hi, guys! Hope you all had a good Christmas and new year! Bring on 2015, WOO! Well, enough being enthusiastic about the New Year. Instead, let's be enthusiastic about this next chapter, where Toshiro is going to really get digging in Ren's past to find out why Redwood got destroyed. Enjoy the ride!
Chapter 30
Silence
Ren is the heart and soul of the villages.
She saved us from ourselves.
We'd do anything for her.
Although I doubt she notices.
I'm not sure if it will last for the rest of her life.
Maybe she'll figure it out.
Who knows?
But no matter what, we will do what we have to.
Even if it goes against our beliefs.
If it's for the sake of her smile, so be it.
That alone will make everything worth it
We don't want her to relive that torment all over again.
More than that…
We just want Ren to be happy.
…
In the living room of Ren's house, everyone was quiet and tense, and the colourful light from the sunset did nothing to help the mood. Renji and Ichigo took to leaning on opposite walls, Rangiku was sat on a sofa with one hand on her bandaged arm, and Toshiro was sitting on another sofa, completely silent. Ever since Ren's panic attack, nobody had said a word except instructions on what to do with the wounded and Ren. Toshiro clasped his bandaged hand. He had never seen Ren act like that before. Just what the hell happened to her? That's what everyone was thinking. Neither of them knew what to make of the situation. So now, they were all in this room, waiting. Waiting for word from Rukia. The sound of footsteps on the stairs immediately snapped everyone out of their morbid expressions and moods and stood up or moved away from the walls, just as Rukia walked into the room, a fresh band aid on her face, which wore a sad expression.
"How is she?" Renji was the first to ask.
"It's difficult to say." Rukia answered honestly. "While she isn't physically injured, I can't say anything about her mental state."
"You mean, you don't know why she panicked like that?" Rukia shaking her head was the answer to Ichigo's question.
"I can't believe a sweet girl like Ren could massacre an entire village." Rangiku said quietly.
"I'd get it if it was that green woman with the whip. She seems capable of slaughtering people any day of the week. What's her name again?"
"Etheline, Ichigo." Rukia said, mentally rolling her eyes at the fact that Ichigo still had problems with names and faces.
"Right, her."
"Maybe she had a reason." Rangiku suggested.
"Like what?" Ichigo asked.
"Well, she targeted the head family, right? Maybe they did something to her, and she was out for revenge."
"By destroying the whole place? That seems a bit twisted for revenge."
"…"Toshiro's hand twitched at Renji's comment. He just called the destruction 'twisted'. He just called Ren 'twisted'!
"Screw this! I'm gonna ask her about it myself."
"Renji, don't!" Rukia blocked the door out of the living room. "Ren is asleep right now. You shouldn't disturb her."
"I don't care. She's got some explaining to do!"
"Do you really think she'd want to talk about what she went through? You saw her reaction. She was terrified!"
"In case you hadn't noticed, I was on the ground with a concussion, Rangiku!"
"Exactly! You don't know what she saw or did!"
"All I know is that she destroyed a village and slaughtered hundreds of people in cold blood!"
"Everyone, calm down." Toshiro said calmly, while resisting the overwhelming urge to punch Renji in the face. "Yelling at each other isn't going to solve anything. Besides, you'll wake Ren, and its best she stays asleep right now."
"Captain Hitsugaya, what do you think about this?" Rukia asked, relieved that somebody else was on her side.
"I for one agree with Renji." Ichigo said before Toshiro could answer.
"Thank you!"
"But, I also believe that Ren would never do this intentionally."
"So, what? She was possessed?!"
"I don't know, maybe."
"My point exactly! You don't know!"
"Neither do you!"
"Boys, keep it down. You'll wake Ren." Rangiku said, trying to calm everyone down.
"Good! It'll save me the trouble later!"
"…" As Renji continued to yell, Toshiro felt himself get angrier and angrier. Renji had no right to talk about Ren like that! Absolutely no right at all! "Enough, Renji." Toshiro said in a threateningly low voice.
"That's not nearly enough!" Renji retorted. "How could she do that to so many humans?! How could she murder them?! Only a monster would do that!"
"I SAID ENOUGH!" Calling Ren a monster was the last straw. And with that yell, the coffee table in the middle of the room flipped over by itself and the curtains flew for a few seconds like the windows had just been opened in the middle of a storm. The Soul Reapers were silent, stunned at that sudden burst of rage. Toshiro had certainly never done that before. And, after seeing a few white starts shine around the table, everyone confirmed that Toshiro's powers must have gone out of control ever so briefly.
"Sorry." Toshiro apologised, quickly calming down. "That sometimes happens when I get emotional."
"No, its okay, I deserved it. I…I was being a jerk." Renji said in a volume that was barely above a mutter. There was a silence, and the tense atmosphere from before was back, only this time, the air could have been cut with a knife.
"Now what?" Ichigo asked, breaking the silence.
"We wait." Toshiro answered. "Lay low for now. What we did today will likely make the village heads suspicious. So, act as normal as possible. Maybe we'll be able to throw them off somehow. Be especially cautious tomorrow. It's the anniversary, after all. As for Ren, she needs to rest, and she needs time. I'll deal with her myself. Now, you go home. I'll take care of everything here."
"Yes, sir." Rangiku was the first to leave the room, respecting her captain's wishes, with Rukia following her. But, it didn't stop Rangiku from pausing to look over her shoulder at Toshiro before she left the room and the house. Renji followed suit after muttering another apology to Toshiro, who accepted it with a wordless nod. Ichigo and Toshiro were the only ones left in the room.
"She's not going to be okay, is she?" Ichigo asked.
"No." Toshiro answered simply.
"Does Zena know anything?"
"No." Toshiro said again.
"Do…Do you know anything?" Ichigo said. Toshiro hesitated.
"…No." He admitted, looking at the carpet.
"If you need us for anything, you know where we are."
"Yeah."
"Well…night." Ichigo left the room, leaving Toshiro alone. Well, he was alone when Toshiro heard the front door close. He knew that Ren's brother and parents wouldn't be home until later today, and Ren was fast asleep in her room. And after the day he's had, Toshiro wanted nothing more than to shut his eyes and put it behind him. So, as soon as he had put the coffee table pack in place and tidied up, he trudged up the stairs and into his room. He may be exhausted, but he thought the things he had seen and learnt wouldn't let him get even a moments rest. But, somehow, he managed to sleep like a log.
…
The next morning, Toshiro wasted no time in going to the door leading to Ren's room. As he thought, it was shut. Maybe if he reminded Ren about the promise he made to play video games with her, Ren would come out and talk to him like nothing ever happened yesterday. That sounded like something Ren would do. So, with confidence, Toshiro raised a hand up to knock.
"She's not home."
"Huh?" Toshiro turned around. It was Harley, wearing dark trousers and a white shirt with a black tie draped around his shoulders.
"Ren's not home." Harley said again, starting to tie his tie.
"Where is she then?" Toshiro asked.
"She's out. Apparently there's a sale on anime and manga in town. Dad's taking her now."
"I see." Toshiro said. Well, at least she was getting her mind off of what was going on. That gave at least some relief to Toshiro.
"My parents and I will be out for a while. We'll be back after lunch. There's something for you to eat in the kitchen. All you have to do is heat it up."
"Where are you going?" Toshiro asked, knowing what the answer was going to be.
"Nowhere important." Harley said with a shrug, tightening the knot on his tie until it was nestled neatly in his collar.
If you have to know, we're going to a memorial service for the anniversary. Harley thought, and Toshiro heard every word. Nowadays, his telepathy seemed to be acting without him realising it. It had become almost as natural as blinking. Even the burning on his back when it happened was less intense.
Right. Toshiro thought back. Wait a minute, how do you know I'm telepathic?
I didn't. I just guessed.
Oh, okay. Toshiro decided not to question this any further. If Harley was anything like his sister, then he was bound to have an uncanny ability to know things based on a hunch. That's how Ren found out about the existence of Zena, after all.
"Harley, are you ready? We're leaving!"
"Coming, Mum!" Harley yelled down the stairs.
"When will Ren be back?"
"She'll be home after Mum and I get back. Dad is going to pick her up and bring her home."
"Okay." Toshiro nodded.
Don't do anything stupid today. Harley thought.
I won't.
"Harley, now!"
"I heard you the first time!" Harley quickly turned around and made his way down the stairs, and Toshiro was alone once again. He just stood silently outside the door to Ren's room, listening to the sound of a car going down the driveway and on the road, leaving the area surrounding the house. With a sigh, Toshiro went back into his room, leaning his back on it to slowly close it until it clicked.
"Now what?" Toshiro said out loud, repeating what Ichigo said yesterday. This time, he really had no idea what to do. This was a huge conspiracy about a village destroyed by a member of the head family. But, how? And why? There had to be a missing puzzle piece or two still lying around somewhere. And he was going to find it. With a flick of his wrist, the rucksack containing all the folders, files and documents he had gathered slid out from underneath his bed. He knelt down on the ground and pulled the files out, placing them all in a pile. He threw the rucksack aside and took a look at the files. They were all the resident records, details on the Thornton family, Nathan's papers for transferring schools, and then there was…that. Toshiro looked behind him at the door. Right next to it, and lying on the floor, was the diary he had thrown across the room all those days ago, still in exactly the same position as it was in when he threw it. He hadn't dared to touch it since then, for fear of experiencing those visions again. But, considering the situation he was in, it wouldn't hurt to try.
Just a quick look… Toshiro thought, reaching out towards the diary. He hesitated when his fingertips were millimetres away. He dug into his reserves of courage and touched the front cover of the diary, bracing himself for the onslaught to come. Nothing. No screaming. No visions. Nothing. Feeling relieved, and a little stupid, Toshiro held the diary properly and flicked through the pages until it stopped somewhere in the middle. The writing was quite scruffy, and it looked more like a spider had walked in ink and crawled over the pages than of somebody's writing. If Toshiro really concentrated, he could read it, or at least make guesses on what some of the words were. And he thought Ren's handwriting was bad. Compared to this diary, Ren wrote neatly! Toshiro flicked through the pages to the front, and saw a pink fabric square saying "This diary belongs to" and nothing after that.
No name… Toshiro thought. Damn. Toshiro shut the diary and tossed it onto the pile of files. He'll deal with that later.
"Zena, something still doesn't make sense. There has to be a reason why Redwood got destroyed, but I don't know where to look first." Toshiro said, and he waited for Zena to appear in his room or respond mentally like she usually did. And waited. And waited some more. "Zena?" No response. Toshiro sighed. "Great. She's ignoring me." Toshiro stood up and looked out the window of the room, giving him a good view of the village hall. "It can't be helped."
A few minutes later
"No-one's around. Good." Assured that nobody could see him, Toshiro opened the door to the village hall a crack and slipped inside, quickly closing the door behind him. He was well aware of ordering the other Soul Reapers to not do anything suspicious, but he just couldn't help himself. He HAD to know what happened all those years ago. And so, without hesitation, he flashed his ID at the lock and entered the storage room, hoping to find more information. He dumped the empty Keroppi rucksack on one of the tables and started scanning the boxes with his eyes. He had records of who lived where, information on Redwood's head family, a school file about Ren, a medical file also about Ren and, for some reason he didn't understand, a transfer notice for Nathan, along with that damn diary. What else could he possibly find useful? Perhaps reports on the Redwood incident were here? Something from the police? Or maybe something happened at Ren's school during the Blank Fortnight?
"Right." With that in mind, Toshiro started looking for something that looked like it came from the police or the school. He found the school one first and dragged the box off the lower shelf, letting it drop on the table. He grabbed a file marked ACCIDENTS and opened it up.
According to this, there were a few accidents at the school six years ago. Toshiro thought. At one point, the door in the storage closet in the gym got damaged from the inside.
"That explains the crack." Toshiro muttered, remembering when he found the crack on the door a few days ago.
Not long after that, a male student in the eleventh grade fell down the stairs. A student in the seventh grade came forward and confessed to pushing them, even though there was no evidence indicating that they did, so the case was dismissed and listed as an accident. Toshiro searched for a name, whether it was of the victim of the person who said they pushed them. And, of course, there is none. Toshiro shifted the papers aside to read the rest. His eyes widened. What? This can't be right! It says that near the end of the week, there was an incident where all the windows in the cafeteria broke at the same time, and there was no evidence to show that it was vandalism. That's impossible!
"Unless…" Toshiro started, remembering when Ren broke a glass in the cafeteria, and did it again in the doctor's office, but with a bottle of disinfectant. "Zena did say that she felt her powers were being used. Maybe…maybe Ren accidentally used her telekinesis." Toshiro checked the dates of the incidents. They were all within the Blank Fortnight.
Of course! Toshiro thought, feeling a few more puzzle pieces fit together in his head. Ren must have had access to Zena's powers during that fortnight. And after the village got destroyed, she forgot she ever used them, which is why there is nothing to be found anywhere but here about the Blank Fortnight. It was like that before this mess with White Raven started, anytime Ren used one of Zena's abilities, she forgot. That has to be it!
"So how did she get access to them in the first place?" Toshiro thought out loud. "If she's a reincarnation, then she should have gained her powers when she reached the same age as Zena. Yet she got them six years early. Why is that? Is it because she came in contact with a strong Cielvian force like I did? No, that can't be it." Toshiro remembered when Ren was enveloped by the white pillar of light in the city square all those weeks ago. "I haven't been through an Awakening like Ren yet. And there's the fact that I still remember every moment I use Ryuki's powers, unless he actually takes control of my body. Why was Ren the only one who forgot? Oh, well." Toshiro shut the file and placed it in his, or rather, Ren's, rucksack. "I'll ask Zena when she stops ignoring me." Toshiro turned away from the rucksack and looked back at the shelves. He immediately saw a box with a black stamp shaped like some kind of shield or crest on the side. It was the symbol the police in this country would have on their uniforms. Just what he was looking for.
"Let's see…" Toshiro dragged that box off the shelf and placed it on the table, replacing the other box back where he found it before searching through the second. There were a few files in there, but most of the box was taken up by little black cassette tapes. Toshiro took one out and read the label. It was dated March 7th 2006. Placing that tape on the table, Toshiro glanced at the rest of the tapes in the box. They were all dated to March 7th 2006. And considering what this room contained, he could only assume they were recorded during the Blank Fortnight, and maybe even about the destruction of Redwood.
There has to be hundreds in here. Toshiro thought. He took a few moments to look around the room. There's no device here that can play them. And the box is too big for me to carry back. Besides, even if I could take it, the heads would know it was missing, and they'll immediately suspect me.
"Damn it." Toshiro grabbed the rucksack and dumped it beside the box. He grabbed a handful of tapes and dropped them inside the bag, hoping that he would get lucky and find something on those tapes, even throwing in the first tape he picked up for good measure. Although, he was highly doubtful Ren's house would have anything that could play them.
"That's enough." Deciding that he had already been in here for too long, Toshiro moved the box exactly where he found it, grabbed the rucksack, turned off the light and left the room, checking the room with a quick glance to make sure he hadn't left anything behind before shutting the door behind him. The backpack felt a lot lighter than when he last came here, but if luck was on his side, then maybe, just maybe, he could find something, anything, to solve this mystery once and for all.
…
"Not home yet, huh?" Toshiro muttered, staring down at the shoes lying on the floor of the boot room. Harley's black loafers were gone. Ren's mother's black heels were gone. Ren's father's work shoes were gone. And, Ren's light grey and pink elastic Skechers were gone. He still had the house to himself. Although, Toshiro was surprised he could make out that the Conner family was gone; there were all sorts of shoes lying around, from sandals to flip flops to Crocs. Toshiro could see Ren's school shoes lying among the throng of footwear. He could still vividly remember how those shoes were what allowed him to meet Ren. Toshiro felt something sting at that memory. For the first time, Toshiro was starting to think that, maybe, if he had never met Ren, then maybe this whole mess wouldn't have happened in the first place. Toshiro shook his head to get the thought out of there. He had more important things to worry about, so he slipped out of his brown shoes and walked into the house. He wandered up the stairs and into his bedroom, dumping the rucksack on his bed. As he unzipped it, Toshiro mentally decided to search the house for a cassette player and see if any of these were useful. The documents waiting on the floor could wait for another day. So, Toshiro grabbed the first tape he saw, fished the keys to the study out of his desk drawer and went to the first logical place to look.
Let's just hope they don't come home before I can get out of there. Toshiro thought as he unlocked the study and entered it. It was just as grand and pristine as when he first entered it several days ago. Only now, he would have to be more cautious than ever.
"Let's see…" Toshiro checked the desk first. Nothing but a few sheets of paper and files. Clearly, Marcus had done some cleaning since Toshiro's last visit. But, no cassette player. So, he turned his attention to the bookshelves. That's when he saw it. There, nestled between a miniature bust of a man and a small vase, was a cassette player, complete with an attached handle to hold it. Toshiro immediately took it off the shelf and placed it on the desk.
Does it work? Toshiro thought. He noticed how there was already a tape inside the machine. Curious, he found the PLAY button and pressed it.
"WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE! WE'VE GOT FUN 'N' GAMES!"
"Ah!" Toshiro yelled, surprised at the unexpected rock song. For some reason, he was expecting something like an interview or a personal spoken diary entry. "Stop, stop, stop, where's the sto-there!" Toshiro finally found the STOP button and pressed it, bringing the room to a silence, which was broken by Toshiro's relieved sigh. "I'll take that as a 'yes'." Toshiro ejected the tape and set it down next to the machine. It was labelled 'Marcus' Rock Mix'. And it looked pretty worn out. Who knew that Marcus liked rock music? Toshiro produced the tape he had randomly grabbed from the rucksack from his pocket and placed it in the player, shutting the compartment closed. He looked at the grandfather clock. It was just a little past twelve. He would have to make this quick. So, without hesitation, he pressed PLAY.
"Interview begins March 7th 2006, 8.07pm." A man's voice said from the machine.
Here we go… Toshiro thought. He picked the machine up and searched it for something to turn the volume up a little louder, because for some reason, there was a little more static than expected. How am I supposed to hear this when I can't understand what they're saying? As soon as Toshiro thought this, a small white glow appeared on the cassette tape, but Toshiro didn't notice, as he was too caught up in trying to hear the recording.
"Damn it, I need to hear this." Toshiro said, growing frustrated. That's when he noticed the glow on the cassette tape. "What?" Toshiro placed the machine back on the desk, and almost immediately, the light started to spread to take up the entire machine and gradually expanded past the machine and past the desk, threatening to fill up the entire room. Toshiro backed away from the glow in caution, and he was too preoccupied to notice the burning sensation on his back. "Wh…What's going on? Ah!" Finally, the light had grown too bright and too large for him to look at, and he covered his eyes as the light covered his body. "So…bright…Is it over?" Toshiro dared to squint open an eye. He wasn't blinded, so that was something. He opened his eye he rest of the way, and the other eye immediately followed suit at what he saw. He wasn't in the study anymore. And he wasn't alone. He was now standing in a hallway of a building he had never been in before, and he was surrounded by people wearing police uniforms. Toshiro had somehow appeared in the middle of a police station. But, everybody was too busy to notice that a white haired boy had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
This place…How did I get here? Toshiro thought, looking around at his new surroundings.
"Excuse me?" Toshiro called out to a policewoman with a blonde ponytail walking towards him. "Could you tell me where-" Toshiro interrupted himself when the policewoman suddenly walked straight through him, stunning him into silence. "What the…" Toshiro looked at his hands. He could see them, but they were almost completely transparent. "What's going on here? It's like I don't exist here." Toshiro looked around again, and he found a window leading to a view of an interrogation room, and that's when Toshiro realised that he couldn't see his own reflection. "Because I don't exist…" And that was when something clicked in Toshiro's head as he subconsciously recalled what Zena said about Ryuki's powers the other day. "I've entered the past!"
It must be because of that tape. Toshiro thought after realising how long he had been talking to himself for. This is probably the moment when the tape started recording. Toshiro's attention turned back to the interrogation room. In there, maybe? After seeing three police officers gather at the window out of curiosity, Toshiro confirmed his theory, and approached the window.
"How many is it now?" One police officer asked another.
"This one's the twenty third. And there's still more to go." The second answered.
"What? How many people are they questioning?"
"I don't know. After something this big, I wouldn't be surprised if they questioned all the villagers."
They must be talking about Redwood's destruction. Toshiro thought.
"I guess." The first police officer agreed. "After all, everybody is a suspect."
"No." The third police officer finally spoke up. "The fact remains that the girl destroyed the village. I don't know how, but an eyewitness saw her."
"An eyewitness?"
"She's being interrogated right now." The second police officer indicated the room they were all looking into. "Apparently, she's one of four survivors, including the Conner child, who is a key suspect."
So there really was more than one survivor. Toshiro thought.
"Poor girl." The first police officer said.
"Let's go. We have a lot of work to do."
"Yes, sir." The three police officers left the window, giving Toshiro space and room to see the interrogation. He stepped a little closer so that he could see who was inside more clearly. There were two officers, a man and a woman, sitting on one side of the table, and on the other side was a young girl with short black hair.
That's the girl in the drawing. Toshiro thought, recognising her straight away. Upon closer inspection, Toshiro saw that the girl had some grazes and several patches of soot on her face and her school uniform, which took the form of a grey pleated skirt and a white short sleeved shirt. Toshiro had seen the skirt enough times to know that it was the lower school uniform of Ren's school, so this girl must be at least eleven, maybe twelve, years old. The girl was refusing to look at the officers, but Toshiro saw the vacant look in her eyes. She was clearly still in shock. This was the look of a survivor. Toshiro spotted a recording device sitting in the middle of the table. That must be where the tape was being made. But, there was a problem. Toshiro saw the lips of the male officer moving, but no sound was coming out. Toshiro couldn't hear a word he was saying. Toshiro leaned closer to the window and placed the side of his head against the glass, hoping to hear something.
"Whoa!" Toshiro yelled as he suddenly fell through the wall and stumbled into the room, a little dazed at what had just happened. "Right, I don't exist. I can just walk through things." Toshiro reminded himself.
"Answer us." The sound of the male officer's voice snapped Toshiro back to the present, or the past, or whatever else he was supposed to call it. "What happened in Redwood?"
"…" The girl said nothing.
"It's okay. Take your time." The female officer said gently. "Go easy on her. She's just a little girl." She said in a harsh whisper to her colleague. The female officer turned her attention back to the girl, who was still not saying a word. "I know this must be difficult, but we really need you to answer the question. What happened in Redwood?" The girl looked up, staring the officers straight in their faces, and quickly cast her eyes aside sadly. There was a silence for a good few seconds.
"I don't know." The girl finally said. "I…"
"…" The police officers leaned forwards in their chair in anticipation, and while Toshiro didn't have a chair to lean forward in, he settled for stepping forward a few paces towards the table.
"I guess they just pushed her too far." The girl said.
"Who's 'they'?" The female officer asked. The girl shut her eyes, silently making it clear that she wasn't going to say anything more. The police officers looked at each other.
"It's pointless continuing." The female officer said, clearly recognising the futility of their questioning.
"But she's an eyewitness to the destruction of Redwood."
"She's in no state for further questioning. She's lost a lot of people she knew, and we're not helping anything. Look if you really want to ask her questions, we'll try again in a few days." The male officer sighed, reluctantly agreeing with his partner.
"Interview terminated March 7th 2006, 8.14pm." The male officer said, and he reached over to the machine to click the stop button. As soon as he did, Toshiro heard a cracking sound. This was followed by a loud smash as the image before him shattered into hundreds of shards, revealing the study back in Ren's house as the shards disappeared as soon as they hit the ground. Toshiro blinked a couple times, still in a daze after what he had just experienced. He looked at his hands, as if he was making sure that he was really back in the present. But, after he touched the desk and noticed how his hand didn't go through it, he knew that he was back.
"Zena, I think I just went into the past." Toshiro said. No response. Zena was still ignoring him. With a sigh, Toshiro ejected the tape from the machine, placing the rock mix tape back and putting the player back where he found it. Pocketing the cassette, Toshiro left the study, locking the door behind him to erase any suspicion. He didn't think much when he went back in his room, dropping the cassette back with the others. It was only after he lay down on his bed with his hands linked behind his head that it finally dawned on him what had just happened. He just went into the past. He travelled through time! He turned his head to the clock sitting on his bedside table.
It doesn't look like any time has passed since I entered the past. Toshiro thought, and went back to staring at the ceiling. I just need to find a way to do it again. This could be just what I need to find the truth. Although, Toshiro still had a clear memory of what he saw and experienced. He could hear the footsteps of the police officers. The water fountain bubbling was loud and clear. Even the smell of freshly made coffee was strong. The visions and trips to the past were definitely more vivid than any vision of the future he had. It was unbelievable; he was there, and yet he was not there at the same time. It was definitely going to take him a while to get used to that feeling.
"Toshiro, we're back!"
"Oh, you haven't eaten yet."
"…" Toshiro could clearly hear the sound of footsteps downstairs, and as soon as he heard Harley calling up to him and Ren's mother noticed the uncooked lunch, Toshiro knew that Ren's family had come back. He stood up off the bed and shoved everything into the rucksack, including the diary, and pushed it under his bed before anybody could ever get a chance to see it. Besides, if they were back, then that could only mean that Ren was here, too. Sure enough, he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. But, they weren't running or trotting like Ren's footsteps. Instead, they seemed to be going quite slowly; so slowly that it felt like an eternity had passed by the time the footsteps reached the top. Toshiro decided that Ren can't have come upstairs yet, and it must be Harley.
"Harley…" Toshiro started, leaving his room. But, to his surprise, Harley wasn't anywhere to be seen. He heard a door open on his left. Just a little down the hall was the door to Ren's room, and Ren was about to enter her room, holding in her hand a few carrier bags, probably of hauls from the sale she went to today. Ren walked into her room, and turned around to close the door, but stopped when she saw Toshiro. Toshiro said nothing. Ren seemed okay, but Toshiro could see that Ren's eyes no longer carried the sparkle they usually had. This was proof enough to show that Ren was far from okay.
"Ren?" Toshiro said. Ren didn't respond. She just looked away sadly and closed the door behind her. She was gone. And Toshiro was left feeling…what was he feeling? Sad? Confused? Hurt?
"Toshiro, do you want me to heat your lunch up for you?" Ren's mother called up the stairs.
"No." Toshiro answered back, never taking his eyes away from Ren's room. He was tempted to go over to the door and knock, but decided against it. Ren needed some space. He'll try again some other time.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'm…" Toshiro looked away from Ren's room. "I'm not hungry." Toshiro went back into his room. It was like he said; all he had to do was wait. Easier said than done.
…
2 days later
Toshiro approached Ren's bedroom door. He had just come back from school, and was loosening the tie around his neck as he walked. He was trying to act as normal as possible so that the village heads wouldn't get suspicious, but that would be very difficult if someone was still shut away in their room. So, eh was going to try and get her to come out.
"Ren?" Toshiro said, knocking on Ren's door. "You didn't come to school today. Are you okay?" No answer. Toshiro sighed. Is she okay? What a stupid question. After what she went through and after what she remembered? Of course she wasn't okay! He had to change the subject, right now. "So, um, I owe you a game on the Xbox, just like I promised. What do you say? Come on, I know you want to." Again, there was no response. "After all, you haven't left your room for days. You must be bored."
And hungry. Toshiro mentally added, noticing the plate of uneaten sandwiches Ren's mother made sitting outside her door.
"Ren, you've locked yourself away for a while now, and I don't understand why. I tried talking to your friends, but they're not saying a word. It's probably because the anniversary is over for another year. Still, you know that I'm here for you." Toshiro's hand subconsciously went to the snowflake key ring hanging from the belt loop on his school trousers. "Your friends kept telling me that you and I are like two peas in a pod. But…I just can't believe them right now, because we're the exact opposite because of…this. You've shut everyone out, and you're not telling anybody why. But, you can tell me. So…how about that Xbox game?" Toshiro listened carefully for a sound from Ren's bedroom. Nothing. "We don't have to play the Xbox if you don't want to. What about that white thing in the living room?" This time, Toshiro finally heard Ren say something, and Toshiro actually felt his face light up at the sound of Ren's voice, but it quickly fell when he heard what Ren said.
"Go away, Shiro."
"…" Toshiro was taken aback at Ren's sad, yet cold, rejection. But, no matter how much he hated it, he had to accept Ren's decision. He was not going to force Ren into talking about painful memories. At least, not today.
"Okay…bye." Toshiro said sadly, turning away from Ren's room and trudging back to his own bedroom.
…
4 days later
"Ren, it's me." Toshiro said after knocking on Ren's door, deciding that he had waited long enough since the other day. "Have you changed your mind about the Xbox yet? Do you want to play on it?" Toshiro was met with the familiar silence. "I guess not." Toshiro didn't say anything for a good few seconds, trying to think of something, anything, to say that had nothing to do with the anniversary or Redwood or anything like that. "So, I don't think I've told you this yet, but I just got access to another of Ryuki's powers. I can see and enter the past. Isn't that great?" Silence. "Ren, you've always been great with psychic abilities. I know you can't see into the past, but you trained me to use my telekinesis, so maybe you have a few pointers on this power. Or, you and I could get some fresh air and spar in the back yard. I'm curious about your fighting style. And, honestly, it's getting a little boring without you. Even Renji misses you." Toshiro was met with more silence. "So, the other day, I was trying to find my phone, and I stumbled across your trading card collection. You have a lot. And I had no idea Charizard was worth that much." Even after this small talk, there wasn't a sound from Ren's room. Toshiro looked at the place he saw the sandwiches a few days ago. It had been replaced with yesterday's dinner of chicken korma, and it still had cling film over it in a futile attempt to conserve heat.
So she still hasn't eaten anything. Toshiro thought.
"Okay, Ren, listen. I really am trying to be patient, but it's already been a week. You'll have to come out sooner or later. At this rate you'll…" Toshiro stopped himself from saying that Ren would go back to the Lady Jane Institute. He didn't want to see Ren as insane, but the longer Ren spent in her room, the harder it was to repress those thoughts swimming through Toshiro's mind. Even so, as Toshiro rested his head against the door, he couldn't stop himself from saying one quiet plea.
"I don't want you to go mad." He said pleadingly. "Ren…Say something…Anything!"
But, there was only silence.
…
And so, this cycle continued for quite some time. Toshiro would knock on the door. Toshiro would talk. He would hope Ren was listening. And every time, Ren would never say a word. Days went by. Those days soon bled into weeks. Eventually, two weeks had gone by. At this point, Toshiro's visits to Ren had become scarce and short. Eventually, he stopped knocking on Ren's door altogether. But, every time he went past the door, and every time he saw it, Toshiro would always hesitate, contemplating trying again. But, he would just reluctantly walk on.
Feathers had attacked a few times, and Ichigo and the other Soul Reapers would deal with them, but without Ren to purify the cores, the came back every other day, and the cycle would continue. They weren't insanely strong Feathers, so they were thankful for that fact. Eventually, one day, Toshiro had come across the Soul Reapers as they defeated a Feather for the third time. Toshiro found the core and picked it up, and to his surprise, it went from silver to gold. Toshiro couldn't have begun to describe how surprised, and yet happy, he was with this discovery. If he could purify Feather cores, then it could only mean that he was getting stronger. Instinctively, he had looked over his shoulder to tell Ren…only to be brought back to the grim reality that Ren wasn't there. It was obvious to the Soul Reapers and to Toshiro; they were all missing Ren.
Toshiro had tried to enter the past through the tapes again, and each time, he succeeded. But, all that did was give him knowledge that he already knew. The head family of Redwood tormented Ren. The Redwood Reaper was the nickname they gave Ren. Ren was the one who destroyed the village. He may have become better at this ability, but it was still in vain. He still knew nothing.
Dixie passed by Ren's house once when Toshiro was walking back from school. She asked where Ren was. So, Toshiro told the same lie he had been telling the teachers and Ren's friends.
"She's ill with the flu."
Dixie just shrugged it off, saying that Ren shouldn't let a human illness hold her down. Toshiro just said he would tell Ren that Dixie said hello. But, he never did.
Ren's friends kept asking and asking and asking about Ren, but Toshiro didn't, and couldn't, tell them about Ren. He couldn't tell them about the trip to Redwood. He couldn't tell them how Ren had regained her memories. He didn't think they would understand. And, a little part of himself was starting to believe that maybe, this was his fault. What if he never took Ren to Redwood? He knew that Ren wanted to leave that place, but he ignored her fear. He was stupid. So stupid…
The days went by.
The food outside the door went almost uneaten.
The Feathers were killed.
The spirit of Zena was silent.
And still, Ren never came out of that room.
…
27th March, 11am, Ren's house (20 days after the anniversary)
"…" Toshiro stared at Ren's door for the millionth time since Ren had shut herself away. He saw the tray of food outside her room. The soup bowl was half empty.
Well, at least she's eating something. Toshiro thought. Toshiro walked away from Ren's room, and as soon as he did, he immediately felt disappointed in himself for not knocking on Ren's door. He wanted Ren to come out, but he had no idea what to say to bring her out. And even if she did leave her room, what would Toshiro do next? What would he say? What would Ren say? He just didn't know. He hated not knowing. And, at the same time, he was afraid of knowing. Toshiro stood in his room, lost in thought. What was he supposed to do now? Was there anywhere else for him to look?
"Damn it." Toshiro cursed. He pulled the green Keroppi rucksack out from under his bed, pulled on his burgundy jacket, stormed down the stairs and left the house. He needed to think in a place that didn't remind him of Ren's absence.
…
"Right." Toshiro wandered into the empty hall in the village hall, switching on the lights and throwing the bag onto the floor with such force, it skidded quite a bit before it hit the wall. "Whoops." Toshiro went over to the bag and picked it up. He was so frustrated and concerned right now, he wasn't thinking straight. He placed it on a nearby table set up underneath a hatch leading to the kitchen area. He unzipped it and opened it wide to look inside. All the files, the dossiers, the tapes and the pink fluffy diary were in there.
"There's got to be something I'm missing." Toshiro said aloud, pulling out the file that contained Nathan's notice of transfer and placing it on the table. "Nathan transferred school's the same year Ren returned to school after she left the mental hospital, yet he transferred back again after six years." Toshiro took out the diary and held it in his hand, staring at the sparkly, fluffy cover. "And there's more to this thing than meets the eye." Looking at it for too long gave him chills and unpleasant memories of the last time he touched it, and he promptly dropped it back in the rucksack. "There is more than one survivor, but I have way of tracing them to where they currently. Live. Their names were withheld in those interrogations I listened to. Damn it, why can't I figure this out?!" With that yell of frustration, Toshiro slammed his fists onto the table, making the rucksack topple over on the table, and a dossier slipped out and fell on the floor. "Huh?" Toshiro looked down at the floor after hearing something drop. He picked it up and read the label. It read MILLSDALE RESIDENTS-2006.
A residential record? Toshiro thought. Thinking back, Toshiro realised that he had never looked at the records of who lived where. Let's see…Tom and Stephanie live in Woolfield, Nathan is in Oakworth, and Ren, myself, Ichigo and the others live here in Hazelford. And that doctor lives in Portsbury lives in Portsbury. Who lives in Millsdale? Toshiro cast his mind back, trying to think of an occasion where somebody revealed where they lived. Oh, that's right. Stephanie mentioned once that Katelyn was born in Millsdale. I can't believe I haven't looked at these yet. Toshiro pulled out the residential records of all the villages, including Redwood, out of the bag and laid them out on the table in an orderly fashion. He then went to the locked room containing information on the Blank Fortnight, among other things, found a box showing residential records on 2007, and he dragged it off the shelf and carried it into the hall, dropping it on the ground. If I just compare the names on Redwood's records with these records and the records of 2007, I'll be able to find out if any survivors live in the villages. Why didn't I think of this before?!
"Now…" Toshiro opened up the folder containing the list of residents in Redwood, pulled up a chair and got to work. Almost an hour of silence passed by as Toshiro read and compared the files. There were no Redwood survivors in Hazelford (just as well, considering how small reminders of Ren's past were enough to give her headaches). There were none in Oakworth or Woolfield, and the only connection to Redwood he could find in Portsbury was Cyrus Shepherd.
All that's left is Millsdale. Toshiro thought, opening up the file that had dropped to the floor earlier. But, after reading the first page, Toshiro found something that he was not expecting. His eyes widened as he read that name over and over again. He grabbed the records for Millsdale from 2007 and double checked.
"It can't be…" He muttered, blinking a couple times to make sure that he was reading this correctly. His shock was interrupted as he heard a door open.
"Huh? Why is the light on?" A girl's voice said. She opened the door to the main hall and entered the room. It was Katelyn. She wasn't in her school uniform like the last time she visited the village hall. Instead, she wore blue three quarter length jeans, a purple t-shirt with a large, yellow star printed on the front, black Converses and a blue short sleeved hoodie to show off the bracelets on her arm and the peace sign black cord necklace. Her long black hair was tied back in a high half ponytail and Katelyn flicked some hair over her shoulder as she wondered who left the light on. "Anyone here?" Katelyn called out, entering the hall. "I noticed the light was on. Did somebody forget to turn it off?"
"Hello, Katelyn."
"Huh?!" Katelyn gasped, sharply turning her head in the direction she heard the voice. It was Toshiro, leaning against the wall with his arms folded, and he seemed to almost glare at her. "Oh, it's only you, Toshiro. You shouldn't scare people like that." Katelyn noticed the box, the files and the rucksack on the table and floor. Her first thought was 'What's Toshiro doing with Ren's rucksack?' Her second thought quickly went to 'What's Toshiro doing with all those files?' Katelyn's eyes widened when Katelyn noticed that one file was wide open on the floor. Katelyn recognised them. They were residential records. She looked up at Toshiro. Just what had he found out?
"I've got a question for you." Toshiro said. "If you've lived in Millsdale your whole life, then how come your name doesn't show up on the list of residents until 2007?"
"!" Katelyn's eyes went wide with a sharp gasp. This reaction didn't go unnoticed by Toshiro. "Oh…that." Katelyn said feebly, trying to think of an excuse. "Well…um…there's an interesting story to that. Why don't I go to the kitchen and put the kettle on?" Katelyn used that excuse to make a brisk walk towards the door and as far away from Toshiro as possible. But, he was having none of it, because he certainly wasn't born yesterday. He unfolded an arm and, with one flick of his wrist, the door leading to Katelyn's escape slammed shut. Katelyn staggered back in alarm, and she heard the sound on a lock turning. She glanced at the wide open shutters. With another flick of the wrist, those too were shut and locked. There was no way out.
"I'm through playing around, Katelyn." Katelyn turned back to Toshiro, who had moved away from the wall and was slowly walking towards her. Katelyn had never seen anyone look so intimidating before. "You were there when I was in this very village hall. You were there when I found Redwood. And that person who left the file on Ren's doorstep must have been you." Toshiro stopped walking when he was just a couple inches away from Katelyn, and narrowed his eyes. "You know something, don't you?"
"…" Katelyn looked away. Toshiro knew a lot more about the anniversary than he was letting on. Just how much research had he done?
"How do you know about Redwood?" Toshiro asked.
"…" Katelyn stayed in silent contemplation. There was no point hiding it now. It made her feel sad, and relieved, that she wouldn't have to keep this secret any longer.
"Where is the diary you found?" Katelyn asked. Toshiro pointed at the rucksack. Katelyn walked over to it and searched through the bag until she found the pink diary. She turned around and held it out to Toshiro, much to his confusion. "Everything you want to know is in this diary."
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't pretend. You can enter the past, can't you?"
"What?"
"I overheard you in the forest. I couldn't see who you were talking to, but I could make out bits of your conversation. You have this power to go into the past, don't you? You must have seen something when you touched this diary, right?"
"…" Toshiro nodded.
"So, you can enter this diary and see exactly what happened six years ago. But hear this; Ren is not a monster. And neither are Nathan and I."
"I never said you were." Toshiro protested.
"But you're thinking it!" Katelyn cried. "I know you are! I've seen the way you treat Nathan! But I'm telling you, I'm not like that! I had no choice! She…She made me!" Katelyn cut herself off before she could get too emotional. She looked away to look at the ground. "She made me." She repeated quietly. Katelyn didn't look up, but she heard Toshiro's footsteps approach her. She felt a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm going to ask you again." Toshiro said in a firm yet gentle tone. "How do you know about Redwood?" Katelyn stayed silent for a few seconds before answering, trying to supress some painful memories.
"Because I didn't always live in Millsdale." Katelyn answered. "I lived in another village."
"What do you mean?"
"Six years ago…I knew Rosalie before she died. I lost my home, my neighbours, my friends, and my…" Katelyn clenched her fist, unable to finish her sentence, and lowered the arm holding the diary.
"Katelyn…" Toshiro started.
"Toshiro…I used to live in Redwood. I…" Katelyn looked Toshiro straight in the face. "I was one of the survivors."
"!" Toshiro's eyes went wide, and he let go of Katelyn's shoulder in shock. He knew that there were survivors, but until now, he had never suspected that Katelyn was a former resident of Redwood. This changed everything!
"So then…" Toshiro started as he put some pieces together in his head. "That girl in the interrogation room…And that girl in the drawing I found…They were both you."
"Drawing?" Katelyn said, confused. "Oh. Did you go back to Redwood?" Toshiro nodded. "I see. So, you must have found that house."
"You mean the one that was untouched by the fire damage?"
"That's the one. That was where I lived before the village got destroyed. Somehow, Ren made sure that my house was never touched during the attack. I was young when it happened, so I didn't think much of it at the time. I was scared. I just wanted to escape. So, I found my parents and took them to the only escape route I could think of. I went underground."
"The tunnels…" Toshiro realised.
"Yes." Katelyn nodded. "Rosalie used them to make quick trips to Hazelford whenever she felt like tormenting Ren."
"You knew Rosalie?"
"She was the one who made me pick on Ren back in primary school. I never wanted to, but I was too scared of Rosalie to refuse. I had no intention of doing it again after Ren attacked me, but Rosalie didn't seem to care. She was too focused on Ren to notice that I had made friends with Ren." Katelyn smiled sadly to herself. "I guess I was trying to make amends for what I had done. I wanted to ease Ren's pain. Eventually, though…" Katelyn shook her head, and Toshiro knew that she was thinking about the destruction of Redwood.
"Why didn't you say no to Rosalie?"
"I couldn't. Nobody could say no to the Thorntons. We all knew that they would step on anyone who didn't fall in line. So, we held our tongues and obeyed any orders they gave us. You wouldn't understand, Toshiro. You're just an outsider."
"…" Toshiro said nothing after this. She was right; as far as the villagers were concerned, he was just a stranger on the outside looking in. "So, you and your parents survived the destruction of Redwood." Katelyn nodded. "Who was that girl in the drawing with you?"
"…" Katelyn placed a hand in her pocket and pulled out something crumpled to show to Toshiro. It was a photograph of a young girl with curly black hair and holding a very big teddy bear that was almost as big as she was. This girl looked to be about six years old.
"Who's this?" Toshiro asked, taking the photo for a better look. He recognised her straight away from the drawing.
"This is my little sister. Her name is Isobel, but we all call her Izzy."
"She's your sister?"
"Was. She…She's dead." Katelyn took the photo from Toshiro's hand and re-pocketed it. "She died when Redwood was destroyed."
"I'm sorry." Toshiro said sadly, looking away.
"I tried to look for her. I ran everywhere I could. But…there was just so much fire…I couldn't breathe…I would have died if I stayed any longer." Katelyn closed her eyes tightly. "I'm a horrible big sister."
"No, you're not!" Toshiro yelled without thinking, surprising both of them. "I mean…If Ren was here, she would tell you to not blame yourself. She would…She would say that you're a good person, and that she would be honoured if you were her elder sister." Toshiro said, thinking quickly of a way to comfort Katelyn. He was never really good with comforting people, especially if they were girls. Hinamori was easy, but anyone else was next to impossible.
"…" Katelyn gave a small smile, feeling a wave of comfort from those words, and Toshiro instantly felt relieved. "Thank you." Katelyn held the diary out to Toshiro again. "Here. Use it to enter the past…and see for yourself exactly what happened. I know that you won't judge Ren for what she did. I can trust you with this."
"…" Toshiro stared at the cover of the book, a little fearful at what he might find. But this was his chance. He could finally get some answers. So, he reached out and held the diary in his hand. He shut his eyes and concentrated. He pictured the diary in his mind, and focused on entering the past inside it.
Take me back to 2006. Toshiro thought. He felt his back burn, and he heard Katelyn give a stunned yell. That must be the light, so it was working again. As soon as the burning passed, Toshiro opened his eyes. He was now outside, staring up at the front entrance to King's.
"I made it." Toshiro said to himself.
"What the…Why am I here too?!"
"Eh?" Toshiro looked over his shoulder. His eyes widened. Katelyn was standing right there, darting her head around at her new surroundings and looking just as ghostly as Toshiro.
"I'm see through! Why am I see through?!"
"Katelyn, calm down. It's alright." Toshiro reassured Katelyn. "You must have been transported here because you were still holding the diary when I entered the past."
"The diary…right…" Katelyn said, calming down a little. "Why do you have it?" Katelyn asked, noticing that Toshiro was holding the diary in his hand.
"Well, sometimes when I enter the past, the object that I used to do so ends up in my hand. The writing and recording appear as the events play out."
"How can you be so calm about this?!" Katelyn almost exclaimed, still freaking out a little about travelling back in time.
"This isn't the first time I've done this."
"Oh, and that makes everything so much better." Katelyn said sarcastically.
"When you're done freaking out, I need to find out where and when we are." Toshiro said, opening the diary up. All the pages had gone blank, but that didn't matter, because some writing appeared on one of the pages he had randomly opened up on. It said it was 22nd February 2006. "Twenty second of February, huh? That's the first day of the Blank Fortnight."
"Someone's coming, Toshiro." Katelyn said, hearing footsteps approaching them.
"Don't worry. Nobody can see us." Toshiro's statement was proven true when a year seven girl with dark blonde hair tied up in two plaits walked straight through Katelyn.
"Wow. That was weird."
"It takes a little getting used to." Toshiro said as the girl walked towards him. He pocketed the diary and turned around as she walked past him, only to be met with a group of five tall boys who looked to be sixteen years old. A couple of them deliberately bumped into the girl, laughing spitefully as the girl fell over. The boys walked away, and the girl picked herself up and carried on walking towards the front entrance. Something inside Toshiro stung when he saw this injustice, but he knew full well that he couldn't interfere.
"Hey, you dropped something!" Katelyn called to the girl, noticing a few objects on the ground that weren't there before.
"They can't hear us, either. We're in the past, so we don't exist to them. We don't cast reflections, and hazards don't affect us. We can even walk through walls."
"Wow." Katelyn breathed. She saw a puddle and stepped in it. Nothing. Not even a splash. "We really don't exist here." Katelyn turned her attention back to the pile of dropped items on the ground. "But I feel for the girl. She's left behind a lot of stuff."
"True. But there's nothing we can do about it." Toshiro said, taking a look at the objects. It was an inhaler and a pink notebook. A pink notebook that looked quite familiar. "Wait a minute." Toshiro knelt down for a closer look. "This is the diary we entered. It belongs to that girl!"
"…" Katelyn looked at the ground sadly, but this went unnoticed by Toshiro.
"A girl with asthma." Toshiro noticed the inhaler next. "I hope she doesn't have an attack today. That's all she needs."
"My inhaler!"
!" Toshiro stood up as soon as he heard a girl's voice. The girl with plaits ran past him and knelt down on the ground to pick up her things. She pocketed the diary first, and then picked up the inhaler, checking for damage. Toshiro couldn't help but notice a few stickers on the inhaler. They were small, green stickers that looked strangely like an animal head and a…a lily pad. Them Toshiro noticed the rucksack on her back. It was bright green, and it looked like a frog. Wait, a frog?
"Thank goodness." The girl sighed with relief as she stood up again. She turned around, and Toshiro got a good look at the diary owner's face. She was quite pale and thin, and she had light pink framed glasses in front of her blue eyes. She seemed familiar to Toshiro, yet unfamiliar at the same time. But, when the twelve year old girl walked past Toshiro again, time seemed to slow down for him. The dark blonde hair. The blue eyes. The scent. They were all so familiar to him. He knew who the diary owner was. And it was not who he was expecting it to be. He was so caught up in this revelation that he didn't notice that the girl had already gone past him. With a small gasp, Toshiro turned around to look at the girl as she opened the door to school and entered the building, vanishing from sight. Katelyn said nothing, knowing that Toshiro had realised something that she already knew.
"I don't believe it." Toshiro said in quiet disbelief. "Ren?"
Well, there you have it. Toshiro has entered the past, with Katelyn along for the ride. It turns out that Katelyn was one of the survivors, and the diary belonged to Ren! Next time, Katelyn and Toshiro explore Ren's past in order to find out why Redwood was destroyed, and why the Blank Fortnight is so…well…blank. Favourite, review, follow on Twitter, like my deviantART, etc. Happy Valentine's Day! See you next time!