Bargain

Tsurugi stared at Amaterasu as she made her office into a big mess.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Amaterasu replied, "I am looking for something."

"What is it? I'll help you." Tsurugi said and immediately cringed because he was the goddamn Tsurugi Kyousuke and he was supposed to be that heartless and soulless character every anime had.

She turned to her and gave him a smirk, "No, thank you. I had enough of you investigating my private life."

Tsurugi rolled his eyes at that. He then said, "Can I ask you a favor?"

"What? Why?" a confused Amaterasu stared at Tsurugi. As always, her eyes were white like a blind man. It gave Tsurugi the chills, but it also made him wonder what Amaterasu's eyes really looked like before she got turned into this.

"I want you to come with me. I need to visit someone and I thought you should come with." Tsurugi said.

"Why would I?" Amaterasu asked.

"You don't really have anything else to do and I think that you haven't gone outside for a long time." Tsurugi explained. All of these were merely guesses but, with the face Amaterasu was making, he knew he hit the jackpot.

Amaterasu pursed her lips and then nodded. "Okay. I trust you."

And Tsurugi widened his eyes a little at the statement before nodding as well.

The two walk out. Amaterasu, who probably never walked out of the house since she was a kid, took in everything silently. She really didn't know what she was missing. Maybe going against the Family's orders was the best thing she had done.

"You can see?" Tsurugi asked her casually.

"Of course I can." Amaterasu said, but then remembered that Tsurugi saw her as a blind girl- no wonder the people looked at her oddly and tried to avoid her as much as possible.

"Hn." Tsurugi grunted in reply.

They reached a pedestrian lane and, once the light became red, Amaterasu started to walk.

"Hey, hey!" a voice stopped her. Amaterasu felt a grip on her hand and she turned to find a young boy wearing a Boy Scout's uniform. His eyes looked determined as he continued, "A blind girl like you shouldn't be crossing the street so casually. And where's your cane? You should have that. Good thing I'm here. I'll help you cross the street."

"Kid, she's with me," someone drawled behind her. Amaterasu turned to find Tsurugi scowling at the kid. Now, that is a funny picture, she mused in her head. Anyway, she's rather glad Tsurugi stepped up. Really, it was rather embarrassing for her to be helped by a kid when she can really see.

"Well, please take care of her properly, mister," the boy scowled back and let go of Amaterasu's hand. His grip was replaced by Tsurugi's and they continued on their way.

"The boy is really nice." Amaterasu said aloud.

"Whatever." Tsurugi snorted and they finished crossing the pedestrian lane. Weirdly, Tsurugi didn't release Amaterasu's grip- but she really did not mind him holding her hand.

"Where are we going?" Amaterasu asked.

"Just... somewhere." Tsurugi huffed.

They continued on their way.

Soon, a large building was looming before them. It made Amaterasu feel like an ant and she thought this was where they would stop, but Tsurugi still kept going. He continued going inside the building, not minding the guards at all and still had his hand on Amaterasu's wrist. The building inside looked classy and really hi-tech. Plasma-screen televisions littered the baby blue walls and the white tiles were squeaky clean. Amaterasu felt like she was going to slip, but she did not at all.

The receptionist looked at them curiously as she asked, "What do you need?"

Tsurugi whispered something that Amaterasu couldn't hear. The receptionist seemed to understand and grabbed the telephone beside her. She conversed for a while before putting the phone down. She said, "You can go right up. Eighteenth floor."

"Thanks." Tsurugi said.

The two walked into the gray elevator. Amaterasu widened her eyes at the reflection of herself on the steel floor. Tsurugi merely looked at her as she continued to be fascinated by the design of the red velvet walls of the elevator. She asked, "Are we visiting someone?"

"...yes." Tsurugi replied.

"The person must be rich." Amaterasu noted.

"He is." Tsurugi curtly replied.

She looked at the small screen on top of the elevator doors and watched the numbers go up. Soon, they were at the eighteenth floor and the elevator doors opened. Tsurugi tugged at her and they continued on their way. Amaterasu like the way the red-and-gold carpet felt on her feet- it was like cotton.

Tsurugi abruptly stopped and Amaterasu almost bumped into him. She asked, "What happened?"

He knocked on the door.

The door opened to reveal the carbon-copy of Amaterasu. She widened her eyes as she realized that it was her brother- Afuro Terumi. He was already an adult and he looked not at all different from when she was a child.

"...onii-chan," she muttered.

And the siblings reunited. It didn't matter that they haven't seen each other for years, it didn't matter that they didn't know anything about each other and it definitely didn't matter that they probably wouldn't see each other again after this. Amaterasu hugged her older brother and broke down by crying onto his shoulder- to which he did the same.

Tsurugi simply watched, a contented look on his eyes.

Amaterasu didn't know what to think when two lean men stopped her. She was merely minding her own business- with a milkshake on hand- as she walked down the familiar path to her house.

Chatting up with her brother really made her thirsty and Tsurugi bought her a milkshake when they walked home. It seemed that after that, Tsurugi's brother was calling him, so she assured that she can get home by herself and told him to go. That's why she was currently walking home alone.

"Amaterasu, you are asked by the Head of the Jinomji Family," one of the men said.

She merely raised an eyebrow as she asked, "And if I refuse?"

The other man smirked and said, "You have no right to refuse."

She simply nods because sooner or later, the Head would have tracked her down no matter what she did. As long as she was alive, the Head would always know where she is. That's why she would gladly face him because she was already in a checkmate.

"Right, then." Amaterasu mused.

The two men opened a portal and Amaterasu gladly walked in with the two trailing behind. Light blinds her (which is ironic because she actually looks like a blind person with no pupils) as she enters a room. The floor of the room is covered with tatami mats, the walls are clearly wooden and there is even a sliding door which is open so you can see the beautiful garden. In front of Amaterasu is a single low table with different assortments of Japanese food and the head of Jinomji Family himself.

He is, however, hooded so Amaterasu cannot see his face that clearly. He is kneeling with a pillow under him and chopsticks on one hand. He must be going to eat lunch even though it is clearly not lunch yet.

"Amaterasu," the man's deep voice was heard.

Amaterasu bowed with curtsy and then asked, "What do you need from me, Head?"

"After that stunt, you think that I still want you as part of this business? You sicken me, Amaterasu, and you also owe me for destroying the lab and effectively killing my brother," the Head said as he snorted.

"Then, I assume you are going to kill me?" Amaterasu asked.

"Of course. I will be the one bring death unto you, Amaterasu," the Head said casually- as if he was merely talking about the weather.

"I see. That is a rather assumptive statement, Head." Amaterasu replied.

"What do you mean by that?" the Head asked as he ate a sushi roll.

"I just think that you will not be able to kill me, Head." Amaterasu said.

The Head stopped chewing for a second as he said slowly, "Are you implying that I am that weak?"

"Yes."

Immediately, the guards had their guns out and aimed it at Amaterasu.

Amaterasu raised a hand- as if to calm down the guards and the Head- as she said, "Of course, you will not be able to kill me if we fought. But, if I put no resistance at all, you will be able to kill me easily with one swoop."

"Do you want us to drug you?"

"Oh, no. I would gladly be willing to put up no resistance. You may take me and do anything you want with me- I will not speak a word of protest." Amaterasu said to the Head.

The Head hummed and put down his chopsticks. He asked, "What is the catch?"

"Do not touch my subordinates- including the girls you captured from my house. Your Family will swear to never kill them." Amaterasu bargained.

"Hm... and if they fought the Family?" the Head asked.

"Only if they did something horrible that you have to result in violence, then yes." Amaterasu said.

The Head held out a hand and his hand bursts into blue flames. He did not seem to mind it at all. Amaterasu walked up and grabbed the Head's hand to seal the deal. The hand was cold despite being in flames and Amaterasu could not help but shiver.

"So, we have ourselves a deal, Amaterasu," the Head said and continued, "we will fetch you tomorrow at eight hundred sharp."

Amaterasu lets go of the Head's hand. She bows at him- a last sign of respect for the one she called 'guardian'.

Natsumi widened her eyes at the news. She whispered, "Why would you do that?"

"I want you to protect them, Natsumi. Make them stronger because I have a feeling that the deal I made with the Head would not last long. I cannot be there to help them fight, so I hope you will be the one there to protect them." Amaterasu said.

"So, you accepted your fate?" Natsumi asked.

"Yes and no. Inside, there is that part of me that is afraid." Amaterasu said.

"Amaterasu..."

"Do not pity me at all, Natsumi. Promise me that you would protect them." Amaterasu said.

"Of course."

"Good. That is my last request, Natsumi. You may go now."

The light dimmed and Amaterasu smiled sadly as she watched Natsumi waltz out of the room. She can hear the faint cries of Natsumi from outside and she closed her eyes- remembering the outside world that Tsurugi had shown her earlier that day.

Kairi hated living in the past.

"Good night, Kairi," a carbon-copy of Kairi told her.

Not this again, she thought. She was reliving her past and she dread it- she dread the end.

"Good night, nee-chan." Kairi replied. She couldn't stop her mouth from moving. Her feet seemed to have a mind on her own and she couldn't do anything but to give up and let nature takes it course.

Black and then it was morning again. Kairi did all her morning rituals and then walked down. She saw her mother quietly serving out her breakfast with a soft look on her face. Kairi ate and then ate. She stood up to leave for school and then-

Ring.

Don't pick that up, please, Kairi pleaded in her mind. She stood rooted in place as she saw her mother take the call. After a while, the phone drops to the floor and her mother also does. Her mother cried and Kairi walked up to her.

"What happened?" Kairi asked, even if she knew what happened.

"Y-your sister... fainted... t-they said she is in a coma. Oh, Kairi," her mother stuttered and then wailed.

Tears filled Kairi's eyes but she did not know how to stop them from falling. This day- this was the worst day for her. Her older sister, already in college living a great life suddenly fainted and stuck in a coma. What the hell could she do? She was frustrated because she couldn't do anything for her sister... for Yuna...

Kairi punched the floor with force. The floor crackled and everything broke like glass, even her mother. Soon, Kairi only saw black. She wondered what she was doing here and why she couldn't see anything. Her senses were dull, she felt numb and her body was heavy- she couldn't lift her arms and legs.

"Oho, she's awake~" a voice cackled beside her.

She tried to turn her head, but she couldn't move at all. She also can't speak, as if her tongue was lead.

"You should go, they're waiting," the voice continued.

Who the hell are you? she wanted to ask.

"No one at all. Just go, I'll be gone by the second you open your eyes, so you shouldn't worry too much," the voice said, answering her question.

"Why did the flashback stop?" Kairi asked.

"I dunno. You tell me~ The important thing is that you're alive now, right?" the voice chuckled.

The voice was right. The important thing was that she's still alive and- possibly- she could return back to reality. Hopefully, the voice was correct. So, Kairi closed her eyes and imagined her friends. She wanted to go back to the world she grew up in- no matter how horrible it was.

"Open your eyes when the count reaches one. Five," the voice hummed and then continued,

"Four,"

"Three,"

"Two,"

"One," Kairi finished and opened her eyes.

"Kairi!"

Ai hated living in the past.

Her biological mother's eyes took one last glance at her before leaving. She was merely five years old and she was already abandoned by her own mother. Whenever she would see families at the park, something bitter tasted her lips. Ai wondered why she was dreaming this- because she knew she didn't time travel to get here.

"Oh, what's this?" a soft voice startled her.

Is that... Hitomiko-nee? Ai thought.

Ai couldn't move her head at all to confirm that. She also couldn't control her mouth- which sprouted out wails. She was crying, Ai realized as she flailed her little arms. She really couldn't do anything but cry and she doesn't have any control over her other body parts.

"Are you okay? Did your parents leave you here?" Hitomiko asked as she appeared in front of her.

Ai managed a nod.

"Okay. Then, let's get you something to drink- you must be thirsty. Would you tell me your name?" Hitomiko asked.

"Asago Yui." Ai replied. The name made her shiver- she never said her real name out loud before. She wanted to cry because the person who gave her that name just left her alone. It made her bitter, closed-up and she couldn't trust.

"Would you like to eat something?" Hitomiko asked.

"Where's mama going?" Ai asked.

"She is working and then she'll pick you up." Hitomiko said. She was lying, Ai thought bitterly. Her mother would never come and would abandon her here at this stupid orphanage where she had no friends at all.

Ai muttered, "You liar."

Everything cracked and broke into pieces. Soon, everything was pitch black for Ai. She tried to look behind her, speak or even flail her arms. It seemed that nothing worked, so she calmly floated in the empty space.

"You're awake," a voice said.

Ai couldn't see him, nor could mutter out a reply for him.

"Get out of here. Sooner or later, you are going to wake up- so why not now?" the voice continued.

Ai thought about the real world. She had no parents, no family and no friends. She would much prefer to stay here where everything was calm and there were no loud noises or anything to kill the peace. Ai would rather not wake up.

"Oh, don't think about those things. You have friends, right?" the voice mused.

Ai thought about it. She thought about Hiroto- the one who had adopted her, Midorikawa, Hitomiko and her father, Seijurou. All of them were nice and supported her, they sincerely wanted to help her. She thought about the new friends she made and... Kariya.

"See?" the voice said and then told her, "Go and close your eyes. I'll count backwards from five and when it reaches one: open your eyes. Ready?"

Ai closed her eyes.

"Five."

"Four."

"Three."

"Two."

"One," Ai breathed out and opened her eyes.

"AI!"

Ru hated living in the past.

Her parents were at it again. They were always fighting and she wanted to rip her ears off because of that. How many days she had gone with seeing them fighting and then ignoring each other after. While Ru would have some clipped conversations with her parents, the two couldn't stand seeing each other.

"Your father is a bastard," her mother said in gritted teeth as she plopped down the couch.

Ru looked up her and asked, "What do you mean, mama?"

This felt a little familiar. It must have been a flashback as Ru couldn't control her eyes, her mouth and any other body parts. Why was she having a flashback? It didn't matter, though, because this didn't affect her at all. Everyday, it was the same: her parents ignored her for a while, her parents would fight and then one of them would talk to her about the weather or other shit like that and then she'd get ignored again.

"Nothing. How was your day?" her mother asked.

"It's fine, mama. I made new friends," Ru lied. She never made friends, really.

"That's good," was her mother's clipped remark.

Silence engulfed them.

The front door burst opened and came in her father- reeking of alcohol and perfume that was definitely not of a man's. Her mother noticed this and a bunch of red lipstick smothered on his face. Her mother shrieked and her father shouted.

They fought. Soon, Ru saw blood trickle down her father's face. There was a cut on his cheek and Ru saw her mother clutching a pair of scissors. Her father was enraged and hit his wife on her jaw. This was different than what her parents do- they were hurting each other physically. Suddenly, Ru knew when this happened and everything became clear to her now. Ru dreaded to see the end because she knew what would happen.

Ru ran towards them and tried to stop the two from fighting. They didn't stop and instead hit her hard on her chest. Ru's knees buckled as she coughed out blood and then plopped down on the floor.

She screamed, "AAH!"

Everything cracked. Ru continued to scream and everything suddenly burst into pieces. Soon, everything was pitch black and there was nothing coming out of Ru's mouth. Her body felt heavy and she couldn't move at all... she was numb.

"Yay, you're awake! Good job," a voice said from behind her.

Ru couldn't form a reply to the voice.

"Well, you should get going. Our time was cut short and now, you have to go," the voice continued.

Why are you here in my brain? Ru thought.

"Because I was put in here. Don't worry, I'm going now and you should, too," the voice replied, answering her question.

Ru thought about the real world and thought about her family. She then thought about her friends- the ones she had made on her own. Ru felt glad that she had some because she was afraid to open up to people. She wanted to go back to them, to feel... happy, again.

"Close your eyes. When I say one, go and open your eyes," the voice ordered her.

Ru closed her eyes.

"Okay. Five,"

"Four,"

"Three,"

"Two,"

"One," Ru said, finishing the voice's countdown.

"RU!"

Kari wondered why the creature was so peeved.

The creature, who she found lurking beside her, was small. It had the body of a small T-Rex with short arms and long legs. Despite being a dinosaur, the creature had white fur instead of reptile skin. Its eyes were small and round and beady plus the creature had a permanent scowl on its face which brings back to the original statement. Why did the creature look so peeved?

"What's wrong with you?" the creature asked.

"What do you mean?" Kari asked as she tilted her head in confusion.

"Let me rephrase that- why is there nothing wrong with you?" the creature asked.

"Again, what do you mean?" Kari asked.

"You- you don't have anything bothering you at all. People always had some problems in their past but you don't have any major problems at all," the creature scowled.

"What about when I fight with my brother? That's pretty major, right?" Kari asked.

"No! That's just normal for siblings, you dolt! He clearly loves you!" the creature scowled.

Kari chuckled, "In other words, I'm just like an ordinary person, right?"

"...yes and no, I guess," the creature replied stiffly.

"What do you mean?"

"Out of all the people I've visited, you're the only one without any major problems in life. That's what makes you so special. We aren't sure if you're the only one out there whose life is pretty much okay, so you are kind of ordinary as well," the creature replied.

"Visited? What do you mean by that?" Kari asked.

"Creatures like me feed on dark emotions, so we look for the most horrible moment in your life and we use that to get those dark emotions. Other people use us as torture devices because, if we are at our full strength, we can continue letting you reliving that moment forever," the creature said.

"So, you're not on your full strength?" Kari asked.

"Nope. Some kid with healing powers made me weak- now, all I have to do is wait for myself to disappear," the creature replied.

"That's rather sad."

"Everything disappears sooner or later, kid."

"Then... how do I get out of here?" Kari asked as she gestured at the dark abyss.

"Oh, well- close your eyes," the creature ordered and Kari did so. The creature continued, "I'll count backwards from five. Once I reach one, open your eyes and you're home free. Five,"

"Four,"

"Three,"

"Two,"

"One," Kari said and then she opened her eyes tentatively.

"KARI!"

So, three chapters left, guys. Yay~

I feel so sad for Amaterasu...

Anyway, reviews?