Give Me Back My Brother
Disclaimer: The game belongs to someone else
Chapter Six: Leaving
Now I'm certain that something is going on…Itsuki has hardly any time to spend with me lately, and the Kurosawa twins have not been by the past couple of days. There are even more butterflies now, and the ground moves everyday now. I can't tell Mommy and Daddy, but I'm really scared. They let me wear my special crimson kimono with the gold butterflies today, but I don't feel any better. The last time they told me to wear it, Mutsuki left and never came back…
Itsuki…please don't leave me…
Chitose heard her brother's door open and looked up from where she sat on the floor. He came out with a serious look on his face, dressed in an old white kimono. His mind seemed to be elsewhere, and he nearly walked right by her without a word.
"I-Itsuki...?" the little girl spoke up quietly.
The boy stopped and turned back. A familiar, sad smile appeared on his face when he saw his little sister there. "I'm sorry, Chitose. I have to go with the Kurosawa twins for a little bit." He started walking again.
Chitose scrambled to her feet and hurried after him. "Will you be back soon?" Her heart was heavy with dread.
He paused a bit before answering. "I'll be back…later tonight."
Why doesn't he look at me..? Chitose stopped along with him at the entrance. Sae and Yae were already waiting anxiously there. The nervous looks on their faces were hardly a comfort to the little girl. Even worse, she noted they were wearing the same kimonos her brothers had been on the day Mutsuki had disappeared.
"Itsuki…" she whimpered.
If the older boy heard her he ignored her. He stood before the Kurosawa twins and withdrew a small dagger from his kimono. All three girls let out a gasp at the sight of the glinting blade. He slashed downwards, cutting the red sash that joined the twins at the waist. Chitose could not help but wince as the rope that connected them was severed in two.
Now that they were free, Sae and Yae each gave Chitose a hug. Itsuki peered out the front door, then turned back to the embracing girls. "The way is clear. We have to go now, before it's too late."
The twins reluctantly released the child and joined Itsuki. He turned to his sister. "Chitose, do not tell anyone that I have left or that the Kurosawa twins are with me." With that, they were gone.
The youngest Tachibana went and sat in the small closet near the other door in the room. She wanted to be there the minute her brother and the twins returned-if they returned…But hours passed with no sign of them, and she eventually drifted off to sleep.
Chitose did not know how much time had passed when she awoke to the sound of frantic, muffled voices. "The twins have escaped!"
Fear gripped the little girl. She could hear footsteps approaching the entrance in a hurry and pulled the closet door shut. Too scared to even breath, she clamped her hands over her mouth and listened.
"We have searched both houses from top to bottom-the twins are nowhere to be found."
"The Remaining is gone, too…"
"He must be helping them-they are trying to escape the ritual!"
"We must tell the Ceremony Master immediately. They are his daughters-he will know what to do."
The two men left the room in the same quick manner they had entered. Chitose waited until their footsteps faded into the distance before letting out the breath she had been holding. Cautiously peeking first to make sure the room was empty, the small girl climbed out of the closet.
"Itsuki…and Sae and Yae…What are they trying to escape from..?" Again, she did not know the answer, but she wondered if maybe they were running from whatever it was that had taken Mutsuki away. She wanted them to get away safely, but she didn't want to be left behind-not with all these scary people in the house.
Chitose put on her shoes and moved to undo the latch on the entrance. The minute her hand touched the lock, a large, curved blade came crashing through the wood, nearly slicing her fingers off. She was in shock and could only cry out as the door was pounded on from the outside and more blades shattered the wood. One came so close to cutting her face that she could feel the cool metal on her cheek.
Letting out a terrified scream, Chitose stumbled back away from the door. She saw the wood give-way to reveal men standing outside with sickles and other weapons. With a small gasp of fear, she collapsed into a dead faint.