Eve was smiling widely now as she stared around the room, her eyes soaking in up all the details that existed: none. Not a single detail, just pure, utter, white. It was calming and peaceful, nothing to distract her.
Eve moved around the room, slowly and gracefully as she stepped against the ground. Her hair was undone and it flew around her in blond sheets as her eyes looked around the room blankly, closing every once in a while to take in a breath. Her red lips were parted as she breathed slowly, concentrating on the flowing movements of her body as she twirled the sharp katana in her hand.
She freed her mind as she let herself get swallowed into the kata, not caring or thinking of anything else. Her body moved for her on memory and instinct, remembering the countless times she had done this dance, the movements ingrained in her memory forever. She let a sweet sigh pass through her lips as she twirled again, the sword whistling above her head as she brought it back down in a smooth arc.
She loved the sound a sword makes when it sliced through the air, the click whiz and clicking of the metal as it strikes upon something. The way the cool steel felt when she traced her fingers along the blade, the delicate carvings on the handle, the grooves her fingers skimmed over. She loved it all.
But here, she could hold and wield a sword all she wanted. Oh how 'un-lady like' it was back home, but here, she may do what she wished. She could practice with a sword every day, with no one to shun her or tell her otherwise. I could grow to like this place. She thought with a sigh.
She faltered, stumbling. Her white world was shattered as she tried to regain her footing.
"You broke your concentration." A voice said.
Eve twirled around, sword still in hand to see figure by the door way, a very large figure.
The person waddled up to her and looked down at her with a fat, chubby face. His eyes were squinted and he talked with an arrogant tone and demeanor. He gave a flirtatious smirk at her and then extended his hand to her.
"Kawabata-san, at your service."
"Y-You speak English." Eve stammered in shock.
"Yes," He said with a triumphant smirk. "You meet my wife yesterday in the Tera no Heya, she told me about you and that you don't speak Japanese. So I knew you must then be the new British girl Shusaku had been raving about."
Eve blushed. "Shusaku was…raving about me?"
"Yes, yes!" Kawabata smiled. "He wouldn't stop talking about you after your lesson with him! He went on and on about a beautiful British maiden here, so naturally, I had to go see for myself! And, you are as fair as described you to be!"
Eve's face was the color of a ripe tomato by now. She fumbled with her sleeves and then brought them up to cover her face. "W-Well I-I'm so glad you and S-Shusaku-sempai think so highly of m-my appearance." She mumbled.
The pig like man laughed a roaring laugh. "Well who wouldn't! You are as beautiful as a flower, but as deadly as a viper." He smiled knowingly at her and then nodding at the sword. "You could surely kill someone with that, and I have no doubt you would, if need may be."
Eve nodded silently as she turned her gaze elsewhere.
"I guess you came to the weapons room to practice, correct?"
Eve looked around the weapons room, the room that used to be her white sanctuary. "Yes, I did. I thought it would be an ideal place to do so, once I saw no one was there."
"Yes, not very many kids live here in the village, with the exception of my son and a few others." He said with a cocky air.
"Ah, your son, and how old is he?"
"Still a boy but he will be a great ninja one day."
"N-Ninja?" eve gasped. So she was right!
"Yes this is a village ninja, didn't you know?"
"I-I asked Shusaku about it but he said didn't answer my question."
Kawabata tutted. "Shusaku, always keeping secrets." He sighed, shaking his head.
"So you really are ninjas?" Eve gasped.
"Yes of course, most people here are. I'm guessing that's why your parents brought you here. Who better to protect you than ninjas?"
Than night itself. Eve thought but she didn't comment. Her head was churning and she took in a shaky breath. "W-Wow, I thought they were just stories."
"Oh, they are very real, my dear. Very real indeed, but there is another thing you should know about us ninjas."
"What is that?"
Kawabata opened his mouth to say something but the woman from yesterday came running into the room. "Kawabata-san!" She cried.
"Nani?" He asked, turning to face her.
She got on her tippy toes and began whispering frantically in his ear. With each word the man's eyes got wider and buggier.
"NANI?" He bellowed, and then he stormed out of the room with his wife running frantically by her side.
Eve was worried something had happened so instinctively she followed behind them, sword still in hand as she followed them into the Circular Room. People were gathered around the large room and eve had to push through clumps of villagers to try to get to the front. She heard woeful murmuring and people turning their heads away and she felt her heart pounding in her chest. What happened, what happened?
She managed to push her way to the front and she saw two figures sprawled out on the floor, a pool of blood under both of them. Eve gasped and stumbled back when she caught sights of something, a red bandana. It had fallen in front of one of the bodies head and she could only place it as one thing. Randy's bandana.
Tears began forming at eve's eyes as she stumbled forward. "No," She murmured softly, shaking her head. "No, no, no, no, no!" She began running to the bodies and then she collapsed to her knees, her kimono splashing in the pool of blood. "NO!" She wailed, tears falling down like waterfalls. "NO!" She slowly reached out her shaky hands and lifted up the head with matted, long brown hair. As she did she saw…Randy's face, a smirk on it as she slowly turned him over.
"Eve…" He rasped, blood falling from the corners of his mouth. There was a large hole in the middle of his stomach, as his someone put a large drill through him. The hole was roughly the size of a cannon ball. "They…found…us." He said. "I don't know how but…they did. We…we tried to stop them, but…they were too…powerful." He gave a painful cough and blood splattered onto Eve's kimono. "Be…careful…"
"Randy," Eve sobbed. "Please, you can't leave me. What about Yui?"
Randy gave a pained chuckle. "She was dead a long time ago, I-I couldn't save her. I had to watch her die."
More tears fell down Eve's face.
"I managed to carry her into here, I'm sorry. I was too reckless, and now, you have no one to protect you." He turned his gaze away. "The Queen would be so disappointed in me, I failed her."
"No!" eve cried. "No! Don't say that! You-you were the best…guardian I could ever ask for, and the best dad…"
Randy smiled and more blood dripped from his mouth. "Eve, you've grown up to be a great woman, I'm really proud of you." He coughed again. "Ugh, all this sweet, dying stuff doesn't suit me."
"It doesn't." Eve chuckled sadly.
Randy smiled and chuckled again but he soon winced and with a soft sigh, his head turned softly to look at Eve, his brown eyes closing and his heart beat stopping.
She stared at him in shock for a little while, her brain not registering that he was dead, just her tears rolling off her cheeks and plopping down onto his. And when it finally did, she let out a heart breaking sob and buried her face into his chest, her hands coiling tightly in his brown hair and she wailed again, crying her broken heart out.
"What's going on?" A voice demanded from the crowd but Eve paid to attention. Her guardian and farther figure, was dead, same with her mother.
There were small sobs from the crowd and then groaning as the villagers were pushed aside. "Eve!" The voice called out once they saw her crying over a body. "Kawabata!" They yelled, not even bothering with the formalities of san. "What is the meaning of this?"
"My wife told me there were two people laying in the Tera no Heya, so I came to investigate; apparently the girl came and heard too."
"Eve," The girl froze when she felt a hand placed on her shoulder and she lifted herself away from the body to look up to see Shusaku. He looked at her with apologetic eyes and he slowly got down on his knees next to her. "It's okay."
Eve felt fresh tears start to boil over and without thinking she latched herself onto Shusaku, burying her face into his chest and began crying again. Shusaku seemed taken aback and surprised but after a few awkward seconds he slowly wrapped his arms around her and tried to calm her down. Eve was glad to be clinging to something that still breathed and through her crying she was thankful to hear the man's heart beat, rather than Randy's still one.
"H-He's dead." She sobbed. "H-He was murdered."
Shusaku didn't say anything but shushed her and whispered comforting words, slowly rocking back and forth as if he was comforting a small child.
"Shhh, there was nothing you could do." He said softly.
"But it's my fault! If it wasn't for me they wouldn't be dead! It's because I exist they died! He-he was in so much pain when he—" She let out another painful sob, clutching Shusaku's black coat desperately.
Shusaku patted her back and slowly got her to stand but she refused to let go off him. "Someone take their bodies, we shall bury them outside." He said to the villagers who were watching the scene before them unfold. And as if a movie ended, they instantly snapped out of it and hurried off, some embarrassed by the scene, some out of pity and confusion. "The rest of you get out candles and offerings for the grave."
Eve sobbed again, her body convulsing and her breath coming in haggard, shaky, heaves as she clung tighter to his tear stained coat.
"Come," Shusaku said softly, leading her out of the Circular room. "Let's get you out of here, okay?"
Eve nodded feebly against his chest as they walked together toward the exit. But Shusaku stopped and looked over to his right to Kawabata still there. "What?" he asked spitefully.
"Nothing," he shrugged. I just wanted to tell Eve that I am truly sorry about this."
Eve looked up from Shusaku's chest and at the large man. "H-How did t-this happen?" She asked.
"I don't know, but from what I've heard they've been here for a while."
Eve's face fell into a heartbroken grimace. "Then why didn't anyone do anything?" She yelled. "Why did everyone just leave them to die? Why didn't you do anything if you knew about it—!"
"—I did know but I didn't believe it was true." Kawabata-san stammered.
"WELL YOU SHOULD HAVE!" She screamed. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"
Shusaku was surprised by her outburst and he quickly turned her away from the elder man. "Great," he muttered. "You just made her worse. We're leaving." He lead a sobbing Eve out of the room and back toward their homes.
As they walked over the bridge Shusaku decided it would be best to keep her in company rather than by herself so he lead her inside his own house and sat her down but the fire pit as he slowly tended to build up the flames.
Eve sat on the floor, her eyes still puffy and red and her body shaking with light sobs and hiccups. When the fire burst to life she stared at it blankly, wondering about the death of her guardians and family.
Shusaku stood and went over to grab some spare porridge and served a bowl for him and eve, along with two cups of tea. He set the food down next to her but she didn't even bother to look at it, she just continued to stare at the fire with light sobs.
Shusaku didn't really know how to console her any further so he decided to let her get it out. He gently held his tea, letting it warm his hands as he stared at Eve, taking in her delicate and soft features. After a few moments of sitting he noticed her eyes.
"Your eyes," he said softly. "They are two different colors."
They were indeed. It was a genetic mutation which makes one of her eyes blue and the other green. She slowly removed her gaze from the fire to stare at him and she gave a small nod. "Yes," She said softly.
"I wonder how I did not notice them before." He mused.
"Most people don't." she said once again softly before she returned her gaze back to the fire.
Shusaku sighed and lifted his food and drink and went to eat in the next room, as she stared at the fire. Once he returned to see she had not move he sighed and sat across from her once more. "Eat," he said. "You'll feel better."
Eve nodded and picked up her bowl and slowly ate it, feeling a little better with each bite (slurp). Shusaku took her bowl when she finished and then she slowly sipped on her tea, the warmness of the liquid filling her.
"Thank you," She murmured.
"Hm?" Shusaku asked, not hearing her soft whisper.
"Arigatoo gozaimasu."
Shusaku smiled and nodded. "You're welcome."
Eve managed a weak smile and she hung her head, gripping the tea cup tightly.
Shusaku noticed her expression and quickly reacted. "Maybe you should lie down." He said quickly.
Eve seemed to grow worried and then she flushed. "In…here?"
Shusaku nodded, thankful for his scarf to hide his small blush. "Yes, I think it would be best for you to spend the night here, to make sure you are safe."
Eve didn't argue, nor reply but simply nodded as she allowed Shusaku to take the teacup from her hands and usher her to behind the shoji screen.
"You may sleep on the mat next to me." He said as if it was no big deal. "I will sleep over there."
Eve nodded and lay down on the sleeping mat, adjusting her pillow as she grabbed a nearby blanket.
"Do you wish to go back to your house and change?" Shusaku asked.
"No," Eve said softly as she turned onto her side and away from him.
"Okay." He replied as he headed out to snuff the fire. As soon as he did all the light, except for a single candle, disappeared, just like the flame of life.
Maybe that's what life is, a flame. It burns and is created easily, and is snuffed out just as quickly and easily. It flickers and simmers till there is a small ember, then that too goes out and the fire, the person is dead.
Eve thought these thoughts sadly and alone till she heard Shusaku enter the room. "Goodnight," He said softy as she heard him adjust himself on his mat. "And…I am truly sorry for your loss."
Eve felt new tears bubble over and drip silently on the floor though she didn't dare make a sound. Shusaku is so caring, and worried about me. I need to be strong, not to make him worry anymore. She said softly. Though I bet he doesn't have his mask on, I wonder what he looks like…
-…Holy crap…what did I just do…? Oh my god…I killed Randy and Yui…I DIDN'T MEAN TO DO THAT! REVIVE REVIVE REVIVE! PHOENIX DOWN! AHHHHHH! *panics* Seriously, I had no idea why I just killed them. See kids, this is what writer's block does to you, it makes you kill off characters and make other characters go through a lot of angst. (Shusaku is picking up the sex pieces~! Kekeke) –No, no he is not…Okay yeah he is~! Well, sorry I killed them off! *shrug*