Author's Note: We're on the traditional Makoto and Hya-chan halo. This time, I decided to do something a little bit different. We're going to hear how they first met and the beginning of their love story. We're going to try and see more glimpses of their pasts in this season. I have so many ideas for this season, I don't know how I am going to make it work. I plan to make this a HUGE season. Anyway, I will also work on how Makoto ends up falling in love with his wife. I just need to figure out how to write a gruff, aloof guy slowly falling in love with our cinnamon roll girl. So far, it's going well. I have a good start. I will have to see where we go with this. I already have next week mapped out. I got the idea from the season premiere. For now, enjoy this week's halo.

Halo One: Testimony:

-Makoto-

I don't remember anything about my hometown or my family. My earliest memories go back to when I was eighteen. I found myself in the countryside. I forgot why I was there but I know that I was looking for a job. I was told that a man in the countryside was looking for a hired hand. So I walked up to the door and knocked.

Now, his name still escapes me at the moment. All that I remember was that he was a big man with a stoney face. That look in his eyes made me consider turning around and running off. But I stayed put. I needed a place to stay and money. When my employer first saw me, he didn't look impressed.

"What do you want?" he asked. I stiffened up as I stood up straight.

"I need a job," I said. There was no emotion on his face. He didn't say a word. I gulped and forced myself to keep talking.

"I need a job here!" I blurted out. "I have nowhere else to go. I heard that you were looking for hired hands!" He still didn't say a word. I didn't know if I was reaching him or not. I wouldn't give up. Something inside of me wouldn't let me.

"I am a hard worker! I am good with my hands. I am quick to learn what I need to do." I started to dig deeper in my brain for anything else. It felt like I was being put on trial. I prayed that he would say something. This man said nothing as he moved aside to let me in. This stunned me as I about stumbled backward.

"Uh… thanks…" I said. I bowed and walked into the house.

To tell you the truth, I don't know how I did it, but he gave me the job. I worked mostly in the fields and around his farm. I had my own room upstairs at the end of the hall. My boss was a strange man. When I first started working for him, he didn't speak to me unless it was to tell me what I was going to do for the day. I took it without question. I managed to talk my way into working for him. I was going to fuck it up. And I did my best to keep my job and my home. I didn't have anywhere else to go. I don't remember why I couldn't go back home. But that doesn't matter anymore. All that mattered was that I could support myself back then. Over time, my boss and I started to get along. We weren't exactly friends, but we respected each other.

-Hya-chan-

My parents died when I was young. I don't remember much about them. My father had a nice-looking watch. My mother gave me my old sparkly star necklace. I think we might have been close. That is all I have about them.

When I was seventeen, I went to go live with my uncle. I moved in the summer of 1983. It might have been 1982, but 1983 would be more accurate. I don't remember the situation that led me to go live with my uncle. I hadn't seen him in so long. He and my father were close. My uncle talked about him daily. I can't remember all of the stories I heard about him. I do think they were happy when they were little boys.

My uncle picked me up from the train station. He was so happy to see me. I walked up and he pulled me into his arms for a great big hug.

"It's so good to see you. How have you been?" he asked. I told him that I was doing good. He walked me over to the cab. We had lunch at a local family restaurant before we went to his house. My uncle told me that he had a worker living with him. I remembered that he wrote about that in a letter last month. It was going to be the three of us in the house. I didn't ask any questions. I just took it all in stride.

-Makoto-

When I first met Hya-chan, I thought she was pretty cute. I had just finished with the garden for the morning when I saw a cab pull up to the house. I knew that my boss was heading into town to pick up his niece. He left before I got up. I just got out of bed, got dressed, had breakfast, and got to work with my daily tasks. I hadn't expected that day to be any different.

I just had to be nosy. So, I watched as the cab doors opened. My boss stepped out first. He turned and helped out this young girl. Now, I got a good look at this princess. Her long black hair looked teased and curled like girls did in the early 80s. Her messy little bangs covered her forehead. She had on what looked like a strange school uniform. (I later learned it was from a Catholic school in the area.) I couldn't stop staring at the princess. She definitely stood out from the scenery. I could tell that she came from the city.

I dusted off my clothes and smoothed down my hair. Sure, I was a bit dirty but that came with the territory. I walked over to the cab.

"Good morning!" I said. My boss and his niece looked up as I smiled and bowed.

"So you're finally up," he said.

"Yes sir," I said. He introduced his niece to me.

"This is the guy I was telling you about," my boss told her. (Part of me didn't want to know what all he said about me.)

"Nice to meet you," she said. She bowed her head. I noticed the small wooden cross on her chest.

-Hya-chan-

I met Mako-kun when I got out of the cab at my uncle's house. He was quite handsome. I wanted to run my fingers through his messy black hair. His jeans and white T-shirt looked great on him. He looked a bit dirty, but it just added to his charm. I didn't fall for him right then. My uncle walked me into the house. He helped me get set up with my things. My room was going to be across from Mako-kun. I could see him working in the garden from my window.

"Let me know if you need anything, okay?" my uncle asked.

"Okay," I said. He closed the door behind him. I sat down on my new bed.

We all had dinner together. It wasn't really that remarkable. My uncle wasn't a good cook. He could only make rice in a cooker. Mako-kun wasn't really good at cooking either. We just had shrimp ramen.

"How is it?" my uncle asked. Mako-kun nodded.

"It's good," I mumbled. I wasn't a fan of cup of noodle, but my uncle made this for us. My uncle was the one who did most of the talking. I can't remember everything that he said. My attention was fixed on Mako-kun.

I'm not sure what first attracted me to him. I watched as he slurped on his noodles while listening to my uncle talk. He would nod occasionally. I found myself staring at him. I had so many questions for him. Where did he come from? What was he doing here? What was his family like? I wanted to ask him, but I don't know why I kept quiet that evening. When he kept me looking at him, I would quickly look down at my cup.

"Hm? Is something wrong?" I heard. I quickly looked up. Mako-kun and my uncle were staring at me. My uncle gave me a funny look.

"Why is your face so red?" he asked.

"Huh?" I asked as I felt along my cheek. My skin felt so hot. My uncle burst into laughter. I covered my face with my hand. He called my name. I lowered my chopsticks on the table.

"I think I'm done!" I blurted out. "Thank you for dinner!" I jumped up and ran out of the room. I heard them whispering confused behind me. I locked myself in my room for the rest of the evening.

Sometime later, there was a knock on my bedroom door.

"Yes?" I asked.

"Are you okay in there?" a voice asked. I froze. Mako-kun was at my door.

"Yes!" I yelped. I quickly straightened up and cleared my throat.

"Uh… come in," I said. I waited for the door to open and for him to poke his head inside. My door was open a crack, but that was it.

"No, I was asked to come up and see if you were okay before I went to bed," he said.

"Oh," I said once I calmed down. We didn't speak for a long moment.

"Well… good night," he said. "I'm across the hall if you need me." I slowly nodded.

"Okay…" I said. "Good night." I didn't move as he closed the door behind him. My cheeks felt hot as my heart started to flutter in my chest. I couldn't grasp what it was at the time. All that I knew was that I had to know who Mako-kun was.

-Makoto-

I didn't really think much about her at first. I slept with many girls in the short time that I came to work with my boss. If he had any judgments, he never voiced them to me. That didn't stop me from noticing the way Hya-chan looked at me. I've seen that look before. Oh no. It's a schoolgirl crush. So far, she hadn't tried to make any moves on me. However, it wouldn't be long before she might try anything.

At first, we didn't get many chances to interact. I had my work and she had summer school. I think she went to some Catholic school in Tokyo. I don't remember what it was called. I doubt that it's still around. She also went to church on Sundays. Hya-chan did make living in that house so much better. For starters, the food got better. I couldn't remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal. I think the first meal was cabbage rolls. Or maybe it was Karaage. Either way, it was really good. I told her as such.

"Uh… thank you," Hya-chan said with bright red cheeks. I had the feeling she was trying to impress me with her cooking. Why else was she actively trying to get better? It might sound conceited, but that is the only reason that I could come up with.

Like I said, I wasn't interested in her at first. She and I were too different. I am an atheist while she was strongly Catholic. She's never managed to get me to go to church with her. She tried, but I would turn her down. I never got it.

To me, the religion looked like some sort of a cult. What was this body and blood thing they had? It sounded cannibalistic and vampiric to me. But really, it was wafers and juice. The boss was an atheist, but he humored his niece.

"The Catholic stuff came from her mother," my boss said. I just nodded along. I already wrote her off in my mind. Hya-chan was going to be like a little sister to me. I had plenty of other women to chase off anyway. That was how I had it for the first few months that she came to live with us.

I have no idea how that changed.

-Hya-chan-

I fell for Mako-kun hard. Within a week, he was all I could think about. Before, I didn't have much interest in anyone. All of the girls and boys at my school had their crushes. Some of them already had dates. I vowed that when I fell in love, that would be the man I married. A couple of boys liked me, but I felt nothing. In fact, I wondered why they liked me. There were prettier girls in my class. For a moment, I thought it would take years to find a husband.

And then I met Mako-kun.

I rarely got to see him during the week. He worked in the fields while I went to school. Back in the 80s, school ran from Monday to Friday on full days. We went to school on Saturdays but it was half a day. Plus, I had church on Sundays. We really only got to see each other in the evenings. At first, I didn't know how I was going to talk to him. I don't think we had anything in common. Mako-kun was two years older than me. He was out of school and already working. I didn't see him with many friends. (I didn't have many friends either.) He smoked and drank too much. He didn't go to church or believe in God. But I still found myself drawn to him. I… I couldn't explain it at the time. I still can't now. I believe that he is my soulmate. I didn't think I would be able to find my twin flame in this day and age.

Now, Mako-kun didn't believe in things like soulmates and twin flames. He thought it was all lame. Most of my classmates would've let him go and gone for another guy if they were in my scenario. But I didn't. I knew that we were meant to be together. I was going to have to get him to see it for himself.

That's when I had the dream about Cupid.

She promised that she would get Makoto to fall in love with me in exchange for something precious and materialistic. I gave her my silver star necklace as payment. I didn't think much of it. It was a dream after all. Cupid said that we had a deal and disappeared.

When I woke up, I found that my necklace was gone. Somehow, I wasn't upset about it. I just thought I misplaced it somewhere.

I never found that pretty star necklace again.

-Makoto-

When did I first fall in love with Hya-chan? Hm… When did I first fall in love with her? Honestly, it's kind of hard to say. To say it happened would be too simple. I think it gradually happened over time. The process was really weird now that think about it.

At first, I couldn't stop thinking about Hya-chan. She slowly started to enter my thoughts. When I was with other women, I couldn't stop thinking about her. I couldn't explain it. There wasn't anything remarkable about her. She wasn't my type and we had nothing in common. But still…

The first time it happened was on August the thirteenth in 1983. I had gotten up for the morning to get to work. For some reason, I got up earlier than anyone else. I just got up and got dressed. I wasn't thinking at first. It didn't dawn on me until I got outside of the house for a smoke.

"What? What am I doing up this early?" I asked myself. I turned and looked at the house. I probably would've turned and walked back into the house to go back to bed. But I didn't. I didn't go back to sleep.

Hya-chan joined the boss and me for breakfast like usual.

"Good morning," she greeted us. I turned and looked up at her. Hya-chan bowed. The first thing I noticed was she wasn't wearing her school uniform. No, she had on a long light blue sundress. I looked her up and down.

"Where are you going today?" I asked.

"The festival in town," she said. She sounded so perky when she said that.

"That's a great idea!" my boss said. I turned to see him grinning at me.

"Why don't you take her to the festival today?" he asked. I gave him a blank stare.

"What's that, sir?" I asked.

"You can take my niece out to her festival," my boss said. "I'm giving you the day off." I stared at him dumbfounded at first.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said, nodding. I couldn't speak. I couldn't think of a response. You can see where this was heading.

-Hya-chan-

Mako-kun took me to the festival. I was so happy when my uncle let me go with him. We didn't talk on the way there. He looked a bit awkward around me. I think this was the first time that he had been alone with me. It might have been that dream I had last night or wishful thinking, but I noticed how Mako-kun kept stealing glances at me. Whenever I turned to look, he'd quickly look away from me. I tried my best to hide a smile from him. Mako-kun cleared his throat. I looked over at him.

"Hm?" I asked. I waited for him to say something. But he didn't say anything.

"Thank you for going with me," I said. Mako-kun cleared his throat again. He looked away again. I noticed that his cheeks were slightly pink. It was almost like he was afraid to do anything with me. He didn't need to be. I trusted him. I thought I heard him mumbling something to himself. I turned and tilted my head to the side.

"Hm?" I asked. Mako-kun wouldn't look at me.

"You're welcome," he muttered. I tried not to giggle at him. Mako-kun pouted as he walked behind me. I held out my hand to him.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Come on," I said. I stood waiting for a long moment. Mako-kun didn't move until it clicked.

"Oh," he said. He took my hand. I giggled as we continued our walk to the festival. Now that I think about it, I don't remember everything that happened on that day at the festival. I think I had a good time. It might have been better with Mako-kun there.

-Makoto-

Things have become messier now. I had hoped that Noriko wouldn't remember anything. But those bastards want to drag her back into their cursed game. Well, they got their way at last. They can make me suffer all they want.

But why do they have to drag her back into the gym?

I have cursed my own weakness since that day. Since then, I have never been able to forgive myself. I… I never wanted this for her. We were supposed to go home and start again from the nightmare the death of our son brought us. The whole thing has become a mess that neither of us can fix.

I tried to keep her away from me. I will bring her nothing but pain. She's suffered enough and I'm tired.

Yes!

I am tired.

Michiko-san can't understand that. I can't do this anymore. They won't let us quit this nightmare. Now, they dragged another player into this Hell. I didn't want this for my wife, much less a kid. Masaomi may be eighteen, but he is still a child. The only thing he has going for him is that he is still in the early stages. Michiko-san, Hya-chan—I mean Noriko, and I are almost used up. The only way she is going to stop is if one of us dies.

I had hoped that they would leave my wife alone. They would just run down Michiko-san and me. But no! They had to pull her in too. What makes it worse is that she is starting to remember everything. With that thought, did I know? Did I know that Noriko was the reincarnation of my Hya-chan?

I would be lying if I said that I didn't.

But yes, I knew.

How long have I known? Honestly… I forgot when it was. It was a long, long time. It might have been longer than that. Or maybe I'm lying. It doesn't matter anymore. I already know what is going to happen.

No. This time is different. Something is not right. Things are bad. Really bad. Oh no… No… No!

-Noriko-

More of my memories keep coming back each day. I remember that I was married to Mako-kun. I want to ask him more questions, but he keeps pushing me away. He's in pain. He's so worn down. I wish that I could help him. But I don't know what to do. I wouldn't know how I can help him. He probably wouldn't let me anyway.

"I don't understand you," I told him. "Why do you keep trying to push me away?" I don't know that he can't see me. Still, he turned his head to face me.

"I've hurt you enough," he said.

"Mako-kun…" I said.

"Go away!" Mako-kun shouted. "Just leave me alone!" My eyes started to well up with tears. It hurts when he shouts at me. I can't do as he says. I won't leave him alone. He's suffered enough. Michi-san is only making it worse for him.

"We have to stop them!" she said. "All of us!" I don't understand what she is talking about. Every time I ask, she asks me what all I remember. I don't see what she is getting at.

"What does that have to do with anything?" I asked. Michi-san took me by the cheeks.

"Because it will be key to stop this game," she said with desperation in her voice. I stared at her so confused.

"What are you talking about?! What game?!" I asked. Michi-chan didn't answer me. I thought that she was going to dodge the question again. Then she said something under her breath.

"What did you say?" I asked. She repeated what she said. Michi-san's voice was soft, but I could still hear what she was saying.

"The game to bring the End of Days."

It felt like my soul left my body.

Since then, it keeps building up in my head. There are so many memories that are trying to drown me. I can't tell what's real or what was imagined. My arms ached to hold my son. I tried to ask more questions about my past life. Mako-kun refuses to tell me anything. I pleaded to know the truth. He still won't tell me anything. Why does he think that he's protecting me by keeping quiet?

It's too late. I keep finding out more of what happened. And it's about to get worse.