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Chapter 15

"Is this the place?" Raiko asked Juniper who was checking the street directory upside down. They were outside an old abounded movie theatre that was laced with cobwebs and dust. The actual theatre on the outside was falling apart, collapsed roofing, broken set of stairs leading to the theatre the old picket fence had very few pickets, paint falling off. The sign of it had had its wear and tear, no one would recognize its name now. Long pine trees stood either side of it, it's leaves slowly swaying as the host club approached the old threatre..

The host club were all wearing black shirts and pants so they could easily identify themselves in case an event arised.

"Lucky we have come when we have," Ichigo commented to them. "This place is going to be torn down soon to build a new hospital quite soon."

"This place looks haunted…." Kakashi began unamused.

"…..Over run by ghosts more like…." Takashi continued with a dreary tone.

"…This place gives me the creeps," Toga finished, chills running down his spine.

"We don't want to go in," they whined in unison.

"So why are we here?" Sakura asked Kaito who was feeling quite edgy by the whole thing himself.

"There is an old legend of Martha Francis," Juniper said in a scary tone, his voice hitched as his undertaker side took over. "Long ago Martha was an actress who used to be on stage at this very place, one night she was getting ready for a performance when suddenly she disappeared after reporting a strange man was nears her dressing room. A year later she was found alive."

"I thought you were about to say she died," Kaito said freaked out.

"No of course not," Juniper said sadly. "She never became one of my father's client. Well anyway, when she was found, she had a X marked scar on her wrist."

"So are you saying that if we find the lady, then we can ask her where she was, which brings us a step closer to this mystery," Sakura said with a tint of hope in her voice.

"Exactly," Juniper replied. "The last time anyone saw her was in here."

"Hey, where are Rukia, Moka and Annette?" Sakura asked noticing they weren't around.

"They didn't want to be dragged here in case anything happened," Ichigo explained to her.

"So where shall we start?" the triplets asked.

"Through the front door men," Kaito said walking up to the door, the rest of the club stayed put. "Hey aren't you guys coming?"

"You should check if it is booby trapped," Kakashi smiled to him.

"No use if we get hurt," Takashi smiled coming up to Kakashi's left.

"I don't know how anyone would explain to mother or rather father to be exact," Toga began to him.

"If us three die," the triplets finished. "At the same time, thanks to you."

Kaito gulped then turned forwards and moved a step closer towards the theatre. The rest of the club egging him on as neither of them wanted to go anywhere near the theatre.

"If you do die, there is a half-price sale on coffins," Juniper called happily to him. "I'll make sure of it."

"One less idiot in this world," Raiko said blankly and Kazuya nodded.

"I wonder if my title can get changed to President if he dies," Ichigo muttered to himself.

"Stop scaring him," Sakura snapped as she walked up to where Kaito was to prove to them. "Don't worry Kaito."

Just then, the floor opened up beneath her, swallowing her whole to a pit of pure darkness, she screamed as the club tried to reach for her, unsable to grab her in time.

"Sakura!" she saw Kaito try to reach out his hand but it was pointless, the ground closed up, leaving the club on top and her below.

Sakura fell, and fell till suddenly she hit the cold hard ground, knocking her out cold.

So many hours later

Sakura woke up on an old, spring ridden bed, with a torn ragged old sheet giving her warmth.

"Well hello child," an old woman greeted her sitting right beside her with a chair. "What brings you to the catacombs of this theatre?" the old woman's grey tufted hair that rolled down her head like a water fall was all dreadlocked, the woman's wrinkled face and dull grey eyes looked at her tenderly. Her face was lightened up by the candle lit room.

"My friends," she yelled with the sudden realisation of what happened. She propped herself and went to get out of the bed but the woman stopped her.

"Hush my child," the woman said gently. "Your friends are fine, now what brings you all to my theatre."

Sakura groaned as she rubbed her head. "We were looking for a woman named Martha Francis," Sakura admitted to the woman.

"Well my dear, you've found her," the woman said kindly. Sakura looked at her with shocked eyes, as she saw the x shaped scar on her hand.

"You live here," Sakura said looking around in the bricked area.

"Indeed I do, cursed by the numbers to live in the theatre I had loved most," the woman said looking around with a dreaded look. "I was young and naïve."

"What happened?" Sakura asked her. "I am Sakura Judai. What happened to you Martha?"

"I can't remember much about it child," Martha looked up with a sad lonely face. "I was in love with a man, we were planning to run away together, when I saw one of his friends just before the performance. I told people where he was but it was if the darkness had swallowed him up since he was not there. After that, I was changing when a set of hands grabbed me. After that, I can't remember. When I woke up next, I was on the floor of the theatre with this mark on my hand," Martha showed Sakura her hand. The x shape had been burnt into the skin. "I have been cursed to live under the thing I loved so much, never being able to love it again. That is their curse, they hold it against you for the rest of your miserable life."

"What?" Sakura said confused, "I don't understand."

"The curse that you deal with them is….." suddenly a loud crashing sound came from above. Martha pushed Sakura under the bed and thrust the sheet underneath to protect Sakura from view. Marth then whispered. "There is a lever underneath the bed, use it, my child, use it." Martha then turned to whoever was there.

"Did I just hear you almost give away my secret?" Sakura heard a man's voice mock Martha, but she couldn't see a thing due to the sheet.

"I haven't seen anyone since you locked me here 5," Martha growled angrily at him, Sakura could sense the hate Martha had for the man.

Sakura searched around for the lever till she found one.

'If I don't move, he will find me,' Sakura thought with her hand on the lever.

'So who is behind you then?' 5 asked Martha. 5 moved towards the bed and Martha spread her arms across.

"I won't let your foul hands touch her," Martha screamed at him, then they both fell on the bed as the man wrestled her, hissing at her as Sakura started to shake.

"Get off me," Martha screeched at him.

She kicked him off then ran at him. Sakura couldn't take it anymore. Sakura pulled the lever with closed eyes, just to be flung even more down, she opened her eyes to find herself looking straight into Raiko's eye.

"She is awake," they rejoiced with a sigh of relief. They hugged her tightly, as she started to shake, her body was filled with sadness and guilt.

"I saw her," she said with her voice nearly breaking. "She was so kind and gentle to me. She almost told me what the curse is, but then…"

She started to cry, the host club sat around her in silence listening. "A man named 5 came and she protected me from him. She was a great woman, a really great woman." She began to cry into her hands, the host club holding her.

Raiko hugged her, wrapping his arms around her head. "It's okay to cry and feel sadness, but you have to use the people who have sacrificed everything as a point to move forward."

Sakura looked up at the teen with the eye patch. He was standing to hug her, to comfort her, showing his warm side. She felt calm by this.

Raiko smiled to her. "After all, by not letting those people lose their livelihood for nothing is a big waste, isn't it?"

Sakura nodded then smiled at him. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it, really just don't," Raiko pulled away and crossed his arms, immediately putting his cold persona on. "No need for you girl to get all soppy on us now." Raiko had suddenly gotten cold as a blizzard again.

Kazuya laughed at the sight, as Raiko glared daggers at him.

"I don't see what is so funny," Raiko said through gritted teeth at him. "SO DON'T YOU START NOW!" Raiko raged at him, kicking Kazuya's leg.

"Oh looks like Raiko has got himself a little crush," Kakashi and Takashi laughed amused as Toga giggled to himself like a fangirl.

"Just because I help someone does not mean anything," Raiko said pissed off at them. His green eye spitting poison at them.

"He is in denial," the triplets chorused.

"Oh I think it is cute," Kaito said smiling. Then the four got their heads smashed, in, face planting into the dirt.

"I did say don't mention it," Raiko warned menacingly.

"Well we now know there are a side to this curse and the connection to the numbers," Ichigo said going off topic. Sakura looked at him with slight disgust, a woman who they could not help probably who had died, and he couldn't care. It made Sakura sick inside.

"Now we just have to piece together the puzzle, by starting with the previous host club," Juniper said.

"I guess it is time for a ball," Kaito said immediately getting up, brushing away any dirt on him.

"A ball?" Sakura asked confused.

"Well we know they are watching us right, well how about we draw them out in the open?" Kaito said as the group went into a huddle to discuss plans. "And we can host it for the parents so our parents can come as well." They huddled even more till they came to a decision.

"Then it is settled then," Kaito announced to his fellow members, "It is time for a ball."

Meanwhile

"I did tell you I wouldn't tell," Martha said smiling at him as he sat across from the room for her. Martha was chained to the bed head by her wrists.

"Not only did you almost tell the curse's meaning, you also let that person escape and I held a knife to your neck and yet still, you refuse me"' 5 said in disappointment.

"I would never love a monster like you," she spat at him. "I only ever loved George."

'I thought he was going to seduce me, what does he have in mind?' Martha thought to herself.

"Well I am afraid but this theatre will be nothing but shambles, you are going to die, George died a long time ago. Considering I did love you, I let you live this long but you have outlived your usefulness, " he threw her a clean skull head with the marking x on it and with the name George imprinted in to it. then walked to the darkness.

"No!" she screamed at him.

"Yes I am afraid, you don't love me, you love George, go rot in hell with him. Goodbye Martha Francis," then the shadows swallowed him whole, leaving Martha to cry by herself, in the darkness, with her best friend in her arms.

End of Chapter

That was a sad chapter, sorry about that. It turned out a lot more sadder than I expected. Please review, and I'll give you a cookie.