A/N: Definition of FanFic: FICTION (a non realistic story) made by a FAN (an ardent follower and admirer) of another person's work, using that person's ideas to make an original story. As such, the only thing the FAN owns is their respective original story and original characters; NOT the object(s) of their FANdom.
She hated Yumi.
It was a fact that was well known to her companions in the Yamayurikai, and especially to her Onee-sama.
Of course, her Onee-sama was part of the reason that she hated Yumi in the first place. Of course, Shimako was a wonderful soeur. She was kind, caring, and always taking time to care for her petite-soeur. No, it was Yumi who she hated. It was Yumi who was always with Shimako. It was Yumi who Shimako would drop whatever she was doing for. Yumi, for whom Shimako would (and had on a number of occasions) pass up spending time with her young en-bouton to escort wherever it was she wanted to go.
And it was Yumi whom Shimako loved above all else...
The boom of thunder resounding brought Noriko back from her thoughts and into the present. The room she was in was dark, even darker than usual because of the storm outside. Climbing off of the bed, she made her way to the window, opening the curtains to stare out as rain and wind pounded the window, hiding the moon in its relentless assault.
"Hrngh...nngh..." At the sound of a soft yet troubled moan, Noriko moved away from the window and back to the bed. Sitting down gently, she stroked the hair of the girl whom had been the center of her thoughts all day.
As Noriko wiped the sweat off of Yumi's sleeping face, she began to thing back upon the events that had led up to her being in the position that she was in now. In fact, it all happened on that fateful day...
"NO! LET ME GO! GET OFF-STOP!"
The girl's screams went unanswered in the stormy night. There was no one to help her. Like always.
WHAM.
The only thing she felt was a dull pain in her head as her vision went dim. The world around her went silent as her mind subconsciously blocked out all external sensation in a last ditch effort to protect herself.
The girl was no longer aware of the rough hands that grabbed her. She was no longer aware of her clothes being ripped away from her. She was no longer aware of what her eyes saw, or what her body felt.
It might have been a day. It might have been ten. It might have been an eternity. It could have been a few hours. However long it was, it was still storming outside when she began to realize the world around her once again. She could feel the freezing rain. Rain and pain. Especially pain. It surged through all of her body. Unable to will herself to move or even think of the concept, she could only lay there, slumped against the wall as the rain pounded her.
Dimly, she heard the sound of a vehicle screeching to a stop, as well as the sound of footsteps. Then, she heard a new voice above the ones currently swirling around her.
"So this is what happened. Shimako-chan was right to be worried."
It was a voice that she knew well.
"...-...-..." The girl though she could hear someone else talking, but for some reason, her mind wouldn't process the voice.
"Sorry, I don't feel like talking. I'm in a bad mood right now, and my friend needs help, so..."
There was the sound of sudden movement, followed by several thuds, and then silence.
Then, amidst the pain, the girl felt warmth as soft hands enveloped her. Slowly she felt herself lift up from the ground, held closely by warm arms.
"There we go. Don't worry. No one will hurt you any more."
'Ah. I... know that voice...but...that's...'
She felt her consciousness slipping away, but she didn't mind. The arms that held her were warm and kind. She was safe.
"...Yes...safe...it was..."
At the sound of a voice speaking, the girl awoke. Stirring, she slowly opened her eyes to realize someone was carrying her on their back. Someone she never would have imagined.
"Yumi-sama..."
"Ah. You're awake. Hold on a moment." Adjusting her arm, Yumi opened up the door she was standing in front of, and entered, placing her cell phone into her pocket while doing so.
"Shimako-chan and I were worried about you. We went by your home, and your parents said that you hadn't gotten there yet. Here we are."
Lowering her gently, Yumi lay The girl down on a large bed. "I'm going to go get the bath ready. I'll be right back."
Watching Yumi leave out of the room, the girl relaxed slightly. 'This place... it must be Yumi-sama's home... Of all people, it had to be her. But why? Why would she even care about me?'
"The bath is ready. I also let Shimako know that I found you. She'll drop by your house later. There is something she has to do first. Do you want to take a bath now, or wait until you go home, Noriko-chan?"
A dead smile came to Noriko's face. "Just like always..."
"Huh? Noriko-chan?"
It's always like this!" Pushing herself up from the bed, she grabbed Yumi by the shirt, pinning her against the wall, "If it had been you, she would have been here in an instant! But no, she's always too busy for me, even now! AND IT'S ALWAYS BECAUSE OF YOU!"
Tears in her eyes, Noriko's hand flew across the air, aiming at Yumi's face. In that same moment, Noriko felt her legs slide from underneath her and something grab her other arm. At the same time, Yumi had disappeared from her view. Then, Noriko was on the floor, her arms and legs pinned to the ground by Yumi's knees. Finally, the older girl's hand tightened around Noriko's neck.
And it all happened in 2.1 seconds.
"Wrong move, Noriko-chan." Noriko's heart froze. Yumi's voice was nowhere near the light, kind voice it was a few seconds ago. Now it was icy cold and emotionless. As if it were a completely different person talking.
"You have no idea how much Shimako cares about you. The hours she's consulted me about how to best get closer to you...the times she taken me to the store to find something perfect for you...and even now, she's out there, looking for the people that dared to harm her precious petite-soeur. She cares about you that much."
Now, Yumi's hand tightened even more, yet Noriko made no attempt to break free, too terrified to even think of the idea.
"And so do I."
At this, Noriko couldn't contain the gasp of shock that came from her lips.
"I've been watching you for a long time, you know. Long before Shimako made you her little sister. In fact, I was the one who pushed her towards you in the first place."
As she felt the weight go away, Noriko sat up to look Yumi straight in the eyes. "Why? Why would you do such a thing?"
She flinched as Yumi's hand moved through the air, but to her surprise, Yumi didn't hit her. Instead, Yumi gently cupped her face with her hands. "Because. I could see it in your eyes. You're the only person who cares about Shimako as much as I do. And, you're the only other person who can look past her popularity and see her for who she really is. Only you, Noriko-chan."
Noriko couldn't stop the tears that were beginning to pour from her eyes and she didn't bother trying. She could only look at Yumi, this girl whom, even after everything Noriko had said and done to her, could still shine so brightly. "How can you be so nice to me? I've been so terrible to you, I've done so many things to you..."
And now Yumi's smile was back. The smile that always won someone over one way or another. The smile that now took Noriko's breath away. "Come on, let's go to the bath. I'll wash your back."
"Alright, we're here."
As the car came to a stop in front of the home, Yumi got out and opened the door for Noriko. "...Noriko?"
"..." After a long moment, Noriko got out of the car. "Thank you for the ride, Fukuzawa-sama, Yumi-sama. I will be fine from here."
"But-"
"It's okay, Yumi-sama."
"..." After a moment, Yumi nodded. "Here." Reaching into her pocket, Yumi handed her a small business card, "This is where I will be staying for the next few days." Before Noriko could react, Yumi embraced the girl tightly. "If anything should happen...if you need someone to lean on...or anything at all..go to that address. Tell them you want either Shimako or I, and show them the card. I promise that we'll be there for you."
Stunned, Noriko gently returned the hug. "Thank you, Yumi-sama. I'll remember that. You two have a safe trip back."
As she watched the Essence drive away, the warm feeling in her chest was slowly replaced by a cold feeling of dread.
Approaching the door, she braced herself for what she knew was not going to be pleasant.
WHAM. For the umpteenth time in the same day, Noriko once again found herself in pain the moment she opened the door.
"AND JUST WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN!"
Noriko winced as her father's voice boomed in her ear.
"WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU! DECIDED TO TAKE YOUR OWN PERSONAL VACATION!"
She ducked, narrowly avoiding a beet bottle that smashed into the wall behind her. "I was-"
"Where did you get those clothes?"
From the hallway, her mother (if you could call her that) entered the room. "Answer the question. Where did you get those clothes?"
By now, her father had moved over to Noriko and grabbed her by the neck, pinning her against the wall. "Well?"
"A...friend...gave them to me..."
Her father let go, Noriko sliding to the floor as her mother moved closer.
"A friend?" She asked again, eyes narrowed. Noriko could only nod.
WHAM.
Noriko managed not to let out a cry as the slap connected. Her mother looked at her with complete disgust. "It's that girl who brought you here,wasn't it? Or maybe the guy who was driving? Either way, it's obvious that you're whoring yourself out to this 'friend' of yours."
Noriko could only look at her in disbelief. How could she even think that!
"What makes you say that?" It seemed her father thought similar.
"Because," The woman gestured to Noriko, "What kind of mere 'friend' gives someone clothes by Jason Wu? That's a $3000 dress this girl's wearing."
Shocked, Noriko looked over the dress she was wearing. It was a belted Houndstooth Sheath Dress, almost completely black with blossoms decorated on it. Of course, Noriko had realized that the material was higher quality than normal, but she had no idea how much so. As her parents talked with each other in the background, she thought back to her earlier conversation with Yumi...
"Here Noriko-chan, try this on. Your a little bigger than me, so... ah, here we go."
Grabbing a dress from one of the closets, Yumi tossed it to Noriko, who was drying herself off on the bed.
"Yumi-sama, this dress, isn't it-"
Yumi pressed her finger to Noriko's lips. "It's just one of my spare dresses I don't wear anymore. I'd rather you have it than toss it out, kay?"
Noriko felt the self-loathing. All this time... no, even when we first met... Yumi-sama's never been anything but kind to me. Even when I was needlessly rude, she would always have something kind to say, and would never be rude in turn...
As these thoughts swirled around her head, her parent's voices came back to her ears.
"-Obviously, that girl is rich if she can waste money on worthless people. Either way, if Noriko's getting paid to whore herself out to her, we'll just make her keep doing it. We can sell the clothes she gets and pocket the cash. We should make sure to get Noriko to grab stuff from wherever that girl lives, too. But still, what kind of twisted person would want this child in the first place? Obviously, she must either be plotting to use her somehow, or she's a complete moron. A rich, dirty moron."
"Actually, she's girl who is a million times better than you will ever be."
The two stopped talking, surprised as their daughter got to her feet, her eyes dark, a glare on her face. "Yumi-sama is much kinder, more compassionate, and a better person than either of you. She's kind enough to help someone she has no obligation to. She compassionate enough to care for someone who hated her. She's loving enough to give some of her own possessions away for the benefit of others."
As she talked, she slowly moved backwards, towards the entrance of the house. "All my life, you two have used me like a tool. Forcing me to do everything that needed to be done... Forcing me to work to keep the home paid for...stealing anything that I would manage to get for myself. I don't care what you say about me, but I won't let you talk about the only person besides Onee-sama to care about me!"
"HOW DARE YOU TALK TO US LIKE THAT, YOU WORTHLESS-!"
WHAM.
Then, you could say that the door exploded. However, that word would not do the action proper justice. More appropriately, the door shattered into an infinitesimal amount of splinters.
"Well said, Noriko. You're finally saying how you truly feel about things."
Stepping in from the outside darkness, the girl with golden brown hair looked like an angel to Noriko. And with her black coat and icy eyes, she looked like a reaper to the others.
"ONEE-SAMA!"
Stopping to give her petite-soeur a warm smile and hug, Shimako petted her hair, "Sorry it took me so long. I wanted to make sure those people who hurt you were well taken care of. Are you okay?"
"I am now, Onee-sama."
"Good. Then..."
She turned back to her sister's parents, her eyes turning icy once again. "Go. There's a taxi outside. Take it and go somewhere you feel is safe; I've already paid the driver. I'll take care of things here."
"Somewhere I feel safe..?"
Shimako nodded, "Don't worry. No matter where you go, I will always be able to find you, so don't worry."
But, Onee-sama-"
"Noriko."
Noriko paused, looking Shimako in the eyes.
"Don't think; feel."
"...mm."
With that she was out the door, running as fast as her sore legs could take her and jumped into the taxi.
"Please! Take me to this address!"
"Is this...really the right place..?"
The estate was huge, just as big as the Ogasawara estate, and just as beautiful. As the taxi came to a stop at the gates and she got out, two security guards immediately approached her, "This is the Fukuzawa estate. Invitation?"
Invitation..? "I don't have an invitation, but I was told to show you this. I need to see Yumi-sam- er, Yumi Houribe?"
Taking the card, the two inspected it. Their eyes widened slightly. "Ah, this is Yumi-sama's card! I see, you must be Nijou-sama. We've been expecting you. Please, come with us."
Following the security guards, Noriko was led into the estate. It was bright and lively. As they moved closer, she realized that there was some sort of party being held.
"Here we are." They came to a stop in front of the manor. The doors were open, and at once a woman, a maid, moved over to them.
"Ah, Nijou-san I presume? We've been waiting for you. Please, this way. Leaving the guards at the door, Noriko entered the manor, following the young maid. "How did you know that I was coming?"
"Yumi-sama told us to expect you. She had a feeling that you would make your way here, one way or another. Ah, she's right in here."
They stopped in front of a pair of large doors. Opening them revealed a large ballroom. Many people were either eating, talking with one another, or simply listening to the music. And in the center of it all, dancing with a young man who shared an uncanny resemblance with her was the girl Noriko had come all the way to see. As she watched Yumi dance, she felt her heart begin to race, her eyes taking in Yumi's elegant form as she swayed to and fro.
"Ah. Noriko-chan!"
As Yumi took notice of her, Noriko began to move automatically, ignoring everyone else in the room as she walked over to the smiling older girl. "Yumi-sama...I..."
Once again, Noriko found Yumi's finger on her lips. "Shh... I've already heard from Shimako-chan. From now on, this will be your home."
"...Eh?" Noriko looked at her blankly.
"Well, not exactly here," Yumi continued, putting a finger to her chin, "Rather, one of the branch houses."
"I don't understand..."
"Sorry about that. Yumi's explanations sometimes lack...critical information." Moving over to them, the young man who looked very much like Yumi nodded to Noriko. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Yuuki Fukuzawa, Yumi's cousin. My family owns this estate. What Yumi means is, she's made arrangements for you to live in one of the houses that my family owns. She's even taken care of your school tuition and-"
"Yuuki!"
Yumi pushed him slightly, "Anyway, you can live at that house for as long as you want, and uncle's willing to give you a job, if you want to work. Of course, the choice is up to you."
"Up to me? After you've done so much?"
"All I've done is set up the stage. It's up to you whether or not to step onto it, as well as decide what you'll perform if you do."
But, how can I? How can I just make my mind up so fast after everything that-"
"Noriko."
And at that moment, as Noriko gazed into Yumi's eyes, she saw the same honesty and kindness that she saw in Shimako's as she spoke the same words her Onee-sama had that led her here.
"Don't think; feel."
There it was again. As she watched Yumi turn and leave the ballroom, she felt her heart speed up once more. 'It's up to you whether or not to step onto it...'
"YUMI-SAMA!"
She was running. Without a care for where she was or who was watching, she ran through the manor, chasing after her benefactor.
"Noriko-chan? What is-!"
Yumi's eyes widened as Noriko's lips met her own. It was a gentle kiss, one full of affection and gratitude, and the tinniest touch of love.
Noriko slowly pulled away, the smile on her face mirroring the one Yumi had on so often. Yumi was stunned. "Noriko-chan... why-"
This time is was Yumi whose words were stopped by Noriko's finger. "You said it yourself, Yumi-sama. Don't think; feel."
Noriko smiled to herself. The next day, she had been taken to her new home, which wasn't far from the Fukuzawa estate, and a few days later, she was introduced to The Family by Yuuki. Since that night, she hadn't been back to her old home. She had a feeling she knew what happened to her family, but she didn't care. Life was life.
Now that I think about it, it might have been Onee-sama's plan the entire time to make me fall in love with Yumi-sama. Even so, I don't mind. I owe Yumi-sama more than I can ever repay her; she means more to me than the world. That's the reason I joined The Family in the first place. To find a way to repay Yumi-sama.
A vibration in her pocket. She pulled out her phone; it was a message from Shimako. 'Meet me in your guest room.'
Noriko's face paled. This was definitely about the encounter with those two girls from earlier that day. Noriko had messed up big time by allowing those girls to even get near Yumi. Pulling up the blanket to Yumi's shoulder, she quietly left the room.
Coming to a stop in front of her room, she knocked quietly, then entered. Surprisingly, Shimako wasn't alone. She was on the bed, and sitting across from her in a chair was Yoshino.
"Onee-sama, I'm here."
"Sit down, Noriko."
Shimako was in a bad mood. The one time she left Yumi's side for a bit, something happened. She felt like kicking herself, but there were more important things at hand.
"After your report, the higher ups are putting efforts into surveillance in the city and the areas around it. It's unusual enough that those two you encountered were in our territory, but the fact that they completely disregarded you and spoke only to Yumi is cause for concern."
"But, Onee-sama, they seemed to react to Touko-chan when she appeared..."
Shimako nodded, "That's exactly why I called you in here. Yoshino-san?"
Yoshino nodded, and handed Noriko a piece of paper. "After doing some research, we think that Touko herself is suspicions. However, Sachiko-san is adamant that there is no real reason to be alarmed. However, we're received information that she's been seem associating with some people that aren't on good terms with The Family."
"Touko-chan..." It was hard for Noriko to believe. Touko didn't seem the type to associate with enemies of her family. Yet she couldn't shake what she had seen earlier that day. The reaction those two girls had to here were completely different than how they reacted to herself, an active member of the family...
"What do I have to do?"
Shimako nodded, then turned to stare out the window. It was still storming outside, almost as dark as the mood in the room.
"You and Yoshino are to investigate Touko in regards to this matter. Be discreet; don't let Yumi-sama find out that her new friend is under suspicion. No matter what, Touko knows more than she's saying. Find out what it is. We'll be watching over Yumi-sama in the meantime."
Yoshino nodded. Noriko, however, had to ask. "And if it turns out the suspicions about her are correct..?"
Shimako didn't turn around.
"If it turns out that Touko is indeed associating with our enemies... kill her. No exceptions."
A/N: And, here we are. In this chapter, we take a look into the back story behind Noriko in regards to how she was introduced to the family, as well as 'That fateful day.' Suspicions arise, decisions made. How will things play out?
As always, I want to hear from you! Thoughts, opinions, concerns, anything! If you want to talk about something, feel free to PM me. I'm always up for a chat!
Until next time!