Disclaimer: don't own much. Don't own at all.

DOCHIRASAMA…?

By: Warm-Ice

Who are you…?

Nobody…

I'm glad to meet you…

Can we be friends?

Chapter 5: THE CURSED

Axel watched her as she watched the world outside. It was always that way with them. He would always keep his eyes on her while she stood at her spot by the window and watched as the world went by, unaware of her existence. At times, he'd think she would be lonely. But she didn't know any other way to live her life so there was no such thing as 'lonely' for her. This was all just normal.

But for him it was sad.

"Did you talk to him?"

"Who, Axel?"

"That boy with Roxas' face."

"No."

His eyes darted to the drawing of the silver haired boy and turned a suspicious glare to her again. "Then you talked to the silver haired boy."

"Yes…" already, everything was starting to make sense to him.

"Did you tell him the story?"

"…….Yes…"

"You knew this was going to happen, didn't you? When Roxas saw that boy, you saw what was going to happen. That's why you sent me…" he said.

Namine was silent.

Axel closed his eyes and sighed. "If that's so, then why did you even let them in the house in the first place? The household already knows and they've started to spread rumors…"

A short while of silence, and then she answered, "I want… Kairi… Roxas … Axel… I want everyone to be free…"

Axel was startled at the answer as if the words she spoke meant suicide, which it did. "Are you crazy?!" he exclaimed, coming closer to her with a pleading look. "Hey, you gotta be kidding. This isn't a good time to joke around."

"I," she interrupted, looking up from her deep thoughts into the vanilla sky, "I want everyone to have fun like Kairi and her friends. If the prince breaks the curse…then all of you will be able to live your lives away from this place." with that, she turned around and smiled her best smile at him, "Axel always said he suffered within these walls, didn't he?"

"But—No…" he was helpless; he couldn't even say what he wanted to say because all the emotions started blocking his throat. That stupid girl, if they go free then what was going to happen to her? She'll be punished by him! She'll be even more suffocated by his tightening grip. She'll be left alone with Him. Rage rushed through his every being and before he knew it he had already set a drawing on the wall on fire. Namine paid it no heed, simply turned back around and remained silent.

"This—isn't fair..." he could only mutter. Why couldn't he say it out loud? Yell at her! Tell her what she was doing was stupid! But…it was her choice and he was only her guardian…."ARGH! Whatever! I don't care anymore!" with that he turned and walked out of the room, slamming the door as he went to cool off.

Namine turned her head to look at the wall where there was a burnt drawing. It was the old drawing she used to stare at. A picture of paradise as she imagined it: a wide grassy plane with trees and flowers in bloom; without boundaries, without worries, without tears.

And it was burning and turning into ashes.

Like my freedom…

"I'm sorry…" she didn't know who she was apologizing to: Axel, Kairi, Roxas…or herself…

"Kairi!" Sora yelled, rushing into the room to Kairi who sat up in bed. Riku walked in after, his mind still trying to relate what that girl said to real life. If what she said was true, then Kairi was…

"Sora, how are you guys? I'm sorry I got you guys tangled up into this mess." She said, looking down with regret.

Sora quickly shook his head and said, "No way. No matter what, Riku and I will stick by your side."

Kairi turned to Riku then, seeing in his eyes something akin to knowing but at the same time questioning. "Riku…"

"I'd like an explanation, if you will." He said, maybe a bit too coldly. He regretted it but he couldn't possibly take it back. He wanted answers and he wanted it to be from her.

Kairi gulped, then asked, "You already know…?"

"That girl told me a fairytale. How is that an explanation?"

She looked surprised, which surprised him too. "You talked to a girl? Did she look like me? Blonde hair? White dress?"

"Yeah, her."

"Namine…"

"Hey, guys, what're you two talking about?" Sora asked.

"Namine?" Riku repeated as a whisper. Namine. Was that her name? What a strange name for a girl…but then again she was a strange girl as well…

"Who's Namine?" Sora tried again, confusion clear across his face.

"You could've met here if you weren't busy drifting off in dream land, you boob." Riku said.

"It's like this, see…" Kairi started meekly, trying to gather up courage to speak. Since Namine herself told Riku, then that must mean that she was allowing them to know what the real story was. All the boys' attention turned to her, trying to comprehend what this whole thing is about. She hoped they didn't think she was a freak.

"I only found this out on my father's funeral. There was a man with fiery hair that came to the house I was temporarily staying in, saying he was there to take me to my sister. He told me the whole story. At first I couldn't believe him but then I started to realize…I already had the symptoms in myself…"

"Symptoms of what?" Sora asked.

"Symptoms…of this…" Kairi took a dagger from her desk, making both boys furrow their eyebrows at the thought of Kairi doing something with a dagger. She looked at them with a fleeting smile, "Please don't think I'm too much of a freak to be your friend…" before cutting her palm.

"K-Kairi!" Sora yelled, alarmed and about to run forward—like Riku—to keep the dagger away and try to clean her wound but she stopped them by bringing her wounded hand up for them to see.

What they saw made their eyes grow wide and their mouths fall open. The large cut across Kairi's palm was closing before their eyes until it was completely healed—as if nothing had happened to it.

"Oh my God…" Riku muttered.

"But—how—" Sora stuttered.

"I found out about this on my first night after the accident…I felt that I didn't have anyone to run to anymore so I tried to kill myself by slitting my wrists, but they healed right before my eyes. That was when Axel came. He told me all about my curse, how in every generation, there was a family that would be cursed with the blood of the witch. It turned out that we were the new generation and his family was the assigned guardian."

She put the dagger back down before coming to stand in front of them. "You can just imagine my surprise when he told me that I had a sister. We've been separated since birth because they had seen the symptoms on her when she was still young. My symptoms only surfaced when I came of age. My father thought he could have given me a chance to live a normal life so he didn't let them take me away."

"Your sister…could she be…"

"Yes, Namine is my sister…"

So that was why they looked so much alike, Riku thought. But what could her curse have been?

"Anyway, when they took me in, they had me choose who my guardian would be and I saw this boy who looked a lot like you, Sora."

"Me? Oh, that guy from earlier!"

She smiled, "Yes, his name is Roxas. After I picked him, I found out that he was the closest to Namine next to Axel who is her guardian. Haha. They were like another version of the three of us."

"Hey, that guy was nothing like me at all." Sora defended.

"So why are they keeping you here?" Riku asked.

"Well, you see, here is a protected place. This house has been the house of the cursed families even before we were born. Only the cursed are allowed here."

"Then why are we here?" Sora asked.

"Because Namine let you in…"

Riku furrowed his eyebrows again. Was this Namine girl really so powerful?

"She said I had a special power even to them…So naturally, special little old me gets special treatment, I guess." She added a bit bitterly.

That was when he remembered Namine say, "Their bloodlines still exist today…Kairi's blood is of the witch. And one of you two has the blood of the knight while the other has the blood of the prince."

"So tell me…" Riku started, "is there any way to break this curse?"

Kairi looked at him for a moment before sighing and pouting as if she was given an annoyingly hard assignment, "Actually no one knows of a cure. That's why most of the time, the cursed spend their whole lives in this house. That's why when you're cursed, once you go in, you'll never go out."

"What! But—what about Kairi? She'll never be able to go out again?" Sora exclaimed. The worry in his face warmed her heart and mgave her strength to muster up a smile.

"Well, at least since Namine allowed you in the house, that means you guys can visit me anytime."

"B-But still…"

"Haha. Don't worry, Sora. Behind this house is a wide garden, I have a lot of places to play in there. I'm totally safe in this place."

Sora pouted, still unsure that Kairi would be happy in that house. The fact that Sora worried so much about her made her blush and laugh, ruffling his spiky hair. "Hahaha. I'm feeling a lot better now, you wanna go play in the backyard?"

Riku turned away, to set his eyes on the door. Somewhere in this strange house, Namine was there. Would he see her again? He still had some questions for her….