Kurenai

Name: Kurenai
Gender: Female
Age: 22 | Physically 15
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 112 lbs
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[III. DENIAL]

“It’s a simple question.”, a hoarse voice shouted. The voice echoed through the iron-walled room. But there was no response, just silence. Then, the man who held the voice threw a punch at a younger man.

The younger man had a larger and stronger body, and yet he didn’t fight back. Instead, he just looked at the older man with dark and unfeeling amethyst eyes.

“Yes or No. Is she your girlfriend or not?”, shouted the older man frustrated. When no response was heard, another punch was thrown at the younger man. “Stop playing games with me, Kurei”, the older man demanded. His eyes cold and cruel as it gazed at the younger man. His arm ready to throw another punch.

The last punch threw Kurei out of balance, but he was able to keep himself upright. A grim smile emerged on his face. “No”, he hissed. However, the old man just looked at Kurei with disbelief.

“That annoying and emotional woman is beneath me. She’s crazy and I hate her. She’s not my girlfriend and never will be...”, he started with an annoyed voice. “...Father”, he said with a smug look on his bloodied features. “Can I go now?”

The older man snapped his fingers. Almost immediately, the doors behind Kurei opened. “You better not lie to me”, he said with a dark tone. His expression was similar to that of a mad man. Kurei just looked at his crazy father with furrowed brows and frustration clear in his eyes. For a few moments he was silent before he started marching for the door.

*****

“He is a moron”, Kurei snapped.

“But he is still your Father, Master Kurei”, responded a calm voice coming from a cheerful man with long raven hair. It was Raiha, Kurei’s most loyal servant.

“I don’t give a fuck”, he said roughly with his own eyes reflecting the insanity of his adoptive father. If only he had a choice, he’d kill the megalomaniac he was forced to acknowledge as his father.

“Yes you do. You know you can’t afford to let Lady Tsukino die. Your mother is too important to you, Master Kurei”, he said with a low and kind tone. He dipped the towel back inside the ice bucket filled with anti-septic and gently pressed it again on Kurei’s face.

The dark-haired boy hissed at the touch. No matter how many times his father punched him, Kurei could never get used to the pain. Each assault left his body tender, bloody and bruised. Sometimes, he would think about taking the drugs they were selling into the black market, just to ease his pain during the encounters. However, he was smart enough to know those drugs were addicting and could lead to worse side effects, such as an early death. But was it so wrong to wish for his pain to end?

“What was it this time?”, Raiha asked with genuine concern in his features.

“The bastard thought I was dating Kurenai”, Kurei spat. Only an idiot would think that Kurei would date the other adopted child of Mori. At least, so he thought.

“Lady Kurenai? She’s nice”, Raiha exclaimed with a huge smile on his face.

“You’re an idiot”, Kurei responded. His eyes glared coldly at Raiha.

Yet, Raiha seemed unfazed by this. He kept the huge smile on his face. “But she’s sweet. She’s beautiful, she’s smart and she makes you smile.”, chimed Raiha.

“Fuck off”, said Kurei after he hit Raiha on his arm. What did everyone see in that woman? Everything about her irritated him to no end. She was annoyingly cheerful. She smiled a lot, smiled too much for a sane person. She had that aggravating attitude, which was like sunshine. She had the gull to slap him. If anything, people should be glad he hasn’t killed the insufferable woman.

Raiha didn’t flinch. Instead, he tended Kurei’s wounds dutifully. “Yet, she’s the first person to make you smile”, he said raising a brow. Raiha knew that Kurei was not the sparing kind. Kurei could have killed Kurenai for slapping him, and instead, he smiled.

“I always smile. I just smiled at her to make her shut the hell up.” He always wore a mask. He always had a smile or a calm face, so that no one will ever know his true feelings. “No one else matters to me, except for myself...”, he said looking away. But that was a lie – Tsukino was very important to him as well.

“If you say so...”, Raiha said nodding. He didn’t like arguing with Kurei unnecessarily of course, but he still thought the two would make a great couple.

*****

“What the hell is this?!”, Kurei shouted. His voice echoed throughout his mansion. All the servants and bodyguards stood still when they heard his voice. All of them, petrified. It was never a good thing when Master Kurei was angry.

Neon rushed towards Kurei’s study room to check on him. She tried her best to calm her heart as she opened the door. She wasn’t sure why her young master was angry, which added to her anxiety. She pitied her young master. He had a horrible father and an absentee mother. He was also very stressed with his work with their underground businesses. If only he had an outlet to let out all his rage. Poor man, he was too good looking to suffer this way, she mused.

Neon pushed the door open and she immediately bent her body and bowed down, to show respect and her humble apologies. She then straightened her back so she could address her master. “What troubles you, Master Kurei?”, she asked respectfully. Upon doing so, she saw her Master looking down at the surface of his work table. If only it was an animate object, Neon was so sure the vase would die upon receiving Kurei’s deadly glare. At least, Neon knew she would if her Master looked at her that way.

The vase behind Kurei’s laptop was filled with red roses – a lot of red roses. Kurei would burn it if he could, but he didn’t think it would be prudent to use his flame within the vicinity of the mansion. He can’t use it anywhere where the monster would find out about it. “Who the fuck placed this here?”, he snarled as he pointed at the vase. He never had a vase in his study room. He hated flowers. He absolutely hated flowers. They were useless. The moment they bloomed, they would die after. As he thought about the uselessness of flowers, he remembered Kurenai’s words. How she said they struggled for that instant bloom. It was a sweet thought, but he still found them useless.

Why was he even thinking about that idiot’s words? He immediately shook the thought away and glared at Neon. “Did you do this?”

Neon took a few steps back and shook her head. “N-no, Ma...Ma...Master Kurei”, the crimson-haired girl said, stuttering uncontrollably. Her heart sank as she watched his amethyst eyes glow frighteningly. Almost instantly, she felt like she would die there and then - That is what happens to people whom Kurei didn’t like. But she can’t deny that this side of him was also attractive. His stare was also very intense.

“Then who?”, Kurei barked, losing his patience. He grabbed a nearby book and was about to toss it at Neon before he noticed the other girl who was standing behind Neon. Unlike Neon, she had long, flowing and wavy chestnut brown hair. Her amber eyes didn’t have a hint of fear either. Instead, the other girl looked at Kurei amused. She was wearing a buttoned-down white long-sleeve shirt over a long and flimsy red dress. Her form, her stance, and her features were brimming with confidence.

The other girl tilted her head to the side and smiled. “What are you doing, frightening poor Neon”, she said softly as she rested her immaculate fingers over Neon’s shoulders. Almost immediately, Neon felt a wave of comfort wash over her.

Instead of smiling, Kurei gave the other girl a menacing glare. “Mind your own business, Kurenai”, he reprimanded. Try as he might, his voice was not as threatening as it was earlier. Damn Kurenai.

Neon looked at Kurenai, wide-eyed. She was worried about her Lady’s safety. Instead of worrying, Kurenai just smiled at Neon.

She motioned for Neon to go before she started making her way closer to Kurei. She just kept the smile as she spoke to him. “It’s my business when you’re scaring everyone in your mansion. Most especially when your threats are uncalled for. Now. Why don’t you tell me what’s wrong?”

For a moment, Kurei just looked at Kurenai in silence. Damn woman was intruding in affairs she should never meddle with. Yet, he can’t help but feel like he was the one being reprimanded, instead of the other way around. His amethyst eyes searched for a hint of fear from Kurenai’s eyes, but he saw none. What was wrong with this woman?

Neon’s feet were planted firmly on the ground. She can’t move. She was no longer scared for her well-being, but instead, she was scared for Kurenai’s welfare. “Lady Kurenai”, she said with a barely audible whisper. This was the second time both her masters had an argument. She wasn’t sure if Kurenai will survive this one. Master Kurei was still a ruthless master after all. Neon had to think of a way to save Lady Kurenai from this.

Afraid that she’d see right through him, he fixed his gaze on the vase instead. “Someone had the audacity to place this infernal thing on my table”, he said folding both his arms over his chest.

“What thing?”, she asked sweetly.

He shot his head back and frowned at Kurenai. “The vase of course”, he yelled. Wasn’t it obvious? Was this woman playing him for a fool, or was she just an idiot?

“Oh.”, she said shrugging off his frown. “I think it’s lovely”, she said thoughtfully whilst she looked at the roses.

Finally, it dawned on Kurei. Who else loved red roses in his mansion? “You...”, he said with his eyes narrowing. “You did this!”

Upon hearing Kurei’s words, Neon wanted nothing else but to run to Lady Kurenai and carry her off to her room where she’ll be safe. She was as good as dead now that Kurei has realized it was her fault.

“Aren’t they lovely?”, she asked with one last smile. Immediately after her words, Kurenai’s right arm flung across the distance between her and Kurei so she could land a slap on his cheek.

This wasn’t the first time Kurenai had tried to slap him, and today, he was ready. He raised both hands to halt her arm. He held tightly on her wrist. “You think I’d fall for the same trick twice?”, he said with a cocky tone.

She just gave him an equally confident look. Next moment, Kurenai’s left arm rose swiftly and slapped his pale face. “No”, she said with a serious tone. “But I would have thought you’d learn your lesson by now when it comes to treating flowers and other people”

Neon stood there frozen and her face was in complete shock, as she watched that hand connect with Kurei’s pale features. “Seriously, does this woman have no fear whatsoever? How could Lady Kurenai even dare raise her tone against Master Kurei, let alone slap him? Does she have some sort of death wish?”, she wondered.

“You...!”, Kurei shouted with his voice shaking. Both hands now cupping his tender cheek, he breathed heavily as he looked at Kurenai with an intimidating stare. “I will kill you”, he shouted. His face was still sore from the beating he had last night, now he had to deal with this woman’s crazy shenanigans?

“Neon. Please leave us to talk.”, she said sweetly as she turned towards Neon’s direction. “Kindly leave us, please? He’ll be fine”, Kurenai added.

“I’m not worried about him, I’m worried about you, Lady Kurenai”, Neon said with her face showing genuine concern. She didn’t want Kurenai to die at such a young age, she was so sweet and kind. Lady Kurenai made everyone in the mansion happy, Neon couldn’t live with herself if something bad happened to her female master.

Then Kurenai’s face changed. She looked at Neon with a serious expression, with a face brimming with authority. “Leave us. I need to talk to him.”, she said with a serious tone. Neon couldn’t help but listen. So in just a few moments, Neon had stepped out of the study. Hoping against hope, that as she closed the door, some mysterious force would keep Lady Kurenai alive, because she didn’t want anything bad to happen to both her masters.

*****

As the door closed, Kurenai’s features changed to a gentler expression. She turned to meet Kurei’s eyes. Slowly her fingers rose towards the bruises and bandages around Kurei’s forehead and cheeks. Her amber eyes looked at his amethyst hues filled with concern.

Kurei flinched at the touch. “What the heck are you doing?”, he shouted angrily. First, she was slapping him, and now, she was looking at him as if she was concerned for her well-being. This woman was crazy. She was crazier than his father.

“What happened?”, she asked with a soft tone. Her fingers gently brushed against the tender areas. She wasn’t scared at all by Kurei’s words. If anything, Kurenai wanted to just embrace him. “Did father do this?”, she asked with her tone faltering. Was she even supposed to call Mister Mori father? Her eyes were now starting to fill with hot tears. She didn’t cry for her own situation, but instead for his. “Why didn’t you go to me?”

“I hate you”, he gritted as he watched Kurenai cry for him. It was the same reason why he didn’t go to her last night and instead went to Raiha’s room. He didn’t want her to see him weak or suffering. That was the last thing he needed Kurenai to see. He wanted to keep his pride.

“Please don’t say that...”, she said with furrowed brows as she watched Kurei close the curtains of his room.

He lowered his gaze for a brief moment. He reached for her waist with both hands and pulled her body impossibly close to his. He wrapped both arms tightly around her waist and allowed his face to drop on her shoulders. His body started to shudder and his own tears started to fall on her clean white shirt. “I hate you. I hate you so much” he shouted as he felt her slender arms wrap around his shoulders. He could curse her all he wanted, but he can never deny the feelings which people around the mansion were clever enough to notice. He was falling in love with her. They saw it in his eyes and his smile.

“I hate you so much”, Kurei repeated once more as she ran her fingers against his sleek black hair. He was doomed because of his feelings. If their adoptive father learns about it, Tsukino, his sweet and darling mother will die. All because he can’t help but fall in love with Kurenai.

*Prelude: Who was Kurenai Prior to Nautilus*

If anything defined Kurenai most as a person for so long, it was the fact that she was a very loyal lover to Kurei. There were instances when she'd reprimand him for doing terrible things, but his actions never stopped her from loving him. In fact, she loved him so much that she was willing to die for him. She willingly volunteered herself to die just so she can make sure the man she loved lived even just a little longer.

Prior to Kurenai's death, she was a ray of sunshine in a mansion filled with evil people. Regardless of how cold, ruthless and evil the people were in the mansion, most especially Kurei, Kurenai still made an effort to make everyone happy and smile. For a time, it worked. For the first time, people saw their emotionless master smile, laugh and be happy.

However, she was adopted by the most evil man in their world, Koran Mori, for the sole purpose of making sure his son will be a cold-hearted and emotionless killing machine in his service. She was brought to the mansion only to test if Kurei would disobey Koran's orders which kept him from feeling any emotion. Unfortunately, Kurei failed the test. He couldn't bring himself to kill Kurenai after he was found to be in-love with her. So as punishment, Koran pushed the trigger for the bomb inside Kurenai's body and killed her.

Her life didn't end there.

Kurei used his sacred flame to attach her soul to his body. She wished for nothing else but to remain with the gentle and kind man she loved, and Kurei granted her wish. So for five years prior to her awakening in Nautilus, she served as Kurei's flame angel.

For five years, she traveled with Kurei and eliminated all his enemies. Thousands of men fell because of her and she felt no remorse. She didn't just knock them unconscious; Kurenai killed every single one of them. She turned them all to ashes.

Her soul was attached to his, and she could have easily told him that she refused to fight his enemies - but she didn't. These people deserved to die. No one should ever touch a single hair in Kurei's body. She despised the fact that he was still forced to work for Koran Mori, but she knew it was for a good purpose: He didn't want Tsukino, his beloved Mother, to suffer the same fate as Kurenai. If Koran didn't have that leverage, she would have killed him first. She would do it all for the man she loved.

Kurenai became as ruthless and as evil as those people who lived in the mansion where she used to live. In all those years, she never regretted it. She believed herself to be right. She did it for the man she loved. It was Kurenai and Kurei against the world.

Nobody else mattered to Kurenai, except for Kurei. For as long as she can remain by his side, nothing else mattered. However, the people of Nautilus changed that.

*The Change*

The most disturbing thing about waking up in Nautilus was the fact that Kurei was no where in sight. The most important person in her life was not in Nautilus and it was enough to bring her to tears. She had no one in Nautilus. Neon, Jisho, Kaoru, Raiha, Miki and Aki were nowhere to be found. She felt so alone. But she was never alone, or at least, the kind people whom she met that day made sure she would never feel lonely.

Upon her arrival in the Southern District, Soul, Nott, Nash, and John all came to her aid. For the longest time, Kurenai thought she could never trust anyone outside of Uruha (Kurei's death squad) again, but she was proven wrong. People were nice and kind. All of them helped her even if they didn't know a thing about her. They guided her. They comforted her. Once more, she entertained the possibility of having a good and peaceful life.

Thanks to the people she met here in Nautilus, Kurenai slowly reverted back to how she was prior to her death. Instead of seeing people as enemies, she thought of them all as possible friends, and cherished them as such. She thought of her stay here in Nautilus as her second chance – a second chance to live a peaceful life and fall in-love. She fell in-love with the morph, Nott. And for a long while, Kurenai thought that she could finally be happy once more.

However, leaving the life she had in her world left a scar much larger than the one she left on Kurei.

The first one to make her realise this was Peter. He told her that what she did in her world was wrong. He questioned her love for such a mad man. He instilled doubts in Kurenai during their conversation in front of Big Ben. He asked if she was happy with the arrangement she had with Kurei as her flame spirit. That day, she told him she was indeed happy and defended Kurei with all her heart. However, the seed of doubt was there. She can’t deny the fact that if she had not known Kurei or his father, Kurenai would still be alive. Still, she told Peter that she didn’t regret all the deaths she caused. In fact, she said all those people deserved to die in the name of the man she loved. In fact, she thought Peter was just a grumpy old man who had never felt love before. Hence, he couldn’t understand her. This was why she imprisoned him in a purple crystal when Nautilus gave her the power ring. She thought she was right and Peter simply needed a change of heart.

Kurenai couldn’t run away from her past forever. She couldn’t run away from the evil things she did as a flame spirit. The souls of the people she killed haunted her – literally. Thanks to Nautilus, all the people she ever killed with Kurei came haunting her. She thought that people would hate her for what she did back in her world. She thought they might finally realise that she wasn’t really a sweet person and instead just a cold murderer. However, her friends came to her aid, instead of judging her. This made her rethink all her actions in the past. Before she died, she used to be the same person whom she was struggling to be in Nautilus, a sweet and kind person. For once, since she arrived, Kurenai began to regret the things she did for love. For the first time, she was beginning to question her love for Kurei and the dark path she allowed herself to thread with him.

During her first Thanksgiving in Nautilus, Kurenai met John’s lover Aeryn Sun. She saw how happy they were together. In fact, Aeryn asked Kurenai to be one of her bridesmaids after John’s marriage proposal. A part of Kurenai was envious of Aeryn and her upcoming wedding. That was the life she wanted. That was her dream. Kurenai didn’t want to live a rich and luxurious life. She couldn’t care less if she was dirt poor. Aeryn and John reminded her of what she truly wanted in life. All she wanted was to be with the man she loved. She used to dream of the day Kurei would propose to her. She dreamt of marrying him in front of their closest friends. She dreamt of seeing the smile on his face when he realizes she was pregnant with their child. She dreamt of growing old with him as they watched their child live out his own dreams. Sadly, all her dreams disappeared when Koran pushed the trigger. So, she had to content herself with watching Aeryn and John prepare for their wedding, even if deep inside, she wanted what they had.

Nautilus was the City of Change. Thus, Kurenai was not bound to live a lonely life forever. She found a man to love and a person to call her child.

A lot of people questioned it, but she never listened to them. Nott was sweet, kind, thoughtful and loving. She didn’t care if they were different. He was a morph and she was a fire angel, but they made things work. They were young and in-love, and like before, she didn’t care what other people thought about them. She couldn’t be happier. For a while, she thought that she had moved on completely from Kurei. She thought that she could finally live the happily life she once dreamt of.

However, though try as she might, 6 months was not enough to forget the man she loved for over five years. She imposed the same things and wishes on Nott, that Kurei gave her without question. They fought publicly. She was consumed by her jealousy. They hurt each other and she shut him out. In the end, she realized that she loved Nott, but she can never forget Kurei. Though Kurei did many unspeakable things to other people, and made her kill his enemies, he was always gentle with her. He loved her with all his life and she could never truly move on from him. So, she had to break things up with Nott, though they remained close friends.

Though at the time, her break-up with Nott was harsh, there was someone who kept her sane and grounded. This person was a kind and he was someone who understood her feelings and cried with her when she felt sad – Denzel Crocker.

Denzel drove her insane at times. He spazzed over fairies. He didn’t treat children well. He had trust issues. He enjoyed coffee whilst she was a tea drinker. He often made things explode and he was accident prone. Yet, he never left her. For all her imperfections, he understood Kurenai, and she understood him. Denzel had a horrible maternal relationship and Kurenai had always wanted a son. Through the weeks they spent with each other, crying on each other’s shoulders and enjoying each other’s company, they finally found what they were looking for.

Denzel had always wanted someone who would love him and take care of him like Kurenai had. This was because she was not like his own mother who ignored him when he was a child. Kurenai wanted to take care of Denzel and was always worried about him. She wanted to make sure he was always safe, to the point of issuing a curfew for him. Somehow, as time passed, their friendship evolved to a mother-son relationship. This was something they spoke about and were in agreement with. It didn’t matter if he was almost 40 years older than him, nor does it matter if he was not her biological child, because in her eyes, he was still her child.

So many things happened in the year that she spent in Nautilus. She found friends. She met and made friends with people who went back to sleep, though they will forever remain in her heart. She found the part of herself which she lost in her death. She found love and lost it. She found a son to treat as her own. She regained the dream which was taken away from her.

Now, Kurenai has a shoppe filled with delicious pastries, tea and lots of flowers, which she maintains so she can make all her loved ones happy. She has a garden filled with flowers, most especially roses, to keep her calm and happy. Every day she attends bending lessons with Ace, a good friend, kindred spirit and good bending master. John was right in telling her she can’t lock her friends in a purple crystal to keep them from hurting themselves. But by training, perhaps she can be strong enough to protect her friends when they need her protection. She still has fear that one day a reality storm can cloud her judgement and make her hurt her friends, but she’ll just have to trust herself and her friends to know that they will still be there after the storm.

Kurei will forever remain as her first and greatest love. Nothing could ever make her forget him. However, now she knows she shouldn’t disregard other people’s lives just because they threatened his life. More importantly, she realized she shouldn’t have followed his orders blindly and out of love. A long time ago, when he made a mistake, she had the courage to slap him and knock some sense into him. Now, if she ever gets a chance to see him in Nautilus, she will do the same. She loved him and will do everything to straighten him out so he can finally live a peaceful life.

The same thing goes with the friends and loved ones she has in Nautilus. If they do anything wrong, she will try her best to correct them, but she will also do her best to understand and forgive them. They may grow tired of it, but she will always bow and apologize for any mistake she makes. She will do everything she can to make sure they are always happy, safe and on the right track.

*Ascension*
If Kurenai ascends, she will take this as a sign that Nautilus still believes in the good within her. She will take it as a sign that the city is where she belongs and that she deserves a second chance in happiness and life. She wasn’t strong enough to protect the person she loved while she was still living, but perhaps she can protect the friends and family she’s made here in Nautilus. Though there are times she still wished her purple ring still worked, so she can keep all her loved ones in crystals and protect them, she knows that isn’t a fair thing to do. She has grown. She has made lots of friends and found a place where she can live the life she had always dreamed of. Even if the person she loves isn’t here, she will still willingly sacrifice her life to protect the city. This is because the people of Nautilus matters so much to her and has been so kind to her. If one day, Kurei arrives and threatens the lives of those in Nautilus, though she will still try to resolve it with peaceful means, she will willingly stand up to him and fight him just like she did before they fell in love with each other.

Now, she realized there was more than one way to love a person and more than one way to protect the people she loved. She will still stumble from time to time, but she trusts herself and her friends enough to know the world does not end there.

NAME: Ally
BREED: Calico
ORIGINAL OWNER: Alphonse Elric
CURRENT OWNER: Kurenai




[Picture is for RP purposes only for thewake]

Part II:

Fading Dreams


She could not identify the man approaching her so she hid behind the bushes. The man’s words echoed through Kurenai’s thoughts. She wanted some fresh air and some roses for her study desk. She did not know her actions would lead to her own demise. She could not see the person threatening her but his words were cold and caused her body to freeze. The moment he spoke tears immediately fell uncontrollably from her amber eyes. She really didn’t want to die. Her words were lost and all she could do was sob as her knees gave in and allowed her body to fall to the ground.

Catching her breath, she begged for her life. She didn’t want to die just yet. She had so many dreams she still wanted to fulfill. A few moments later, the man came into view and she saw it was Kurei. Somehow, a wave of comfort washed over her. A lot of people feared Kurei. The moment she had arrived in the mansion people warned her about him. Perhaps she was a fool or perhaps she read him too well, but she didn’t fear Kurei. His words were certainly frightening, cold and inspired fear of death upon people, but she wasn’t afraid. She was never afraid of him.

He scolded her. He looked angrily at her. She simply smiled in return. She took her handkerchief from her skirt’s pocket and wiped the tears from her face. Kurenai struggled to stand up. Her knees were shaking, but she stood up to meet his gaze. Again, she smiled back at him.

She disregarded his tone and simply listened to his words. He was concerned. It was thoughtful of him. Her smile widened. “Roses”, she answered simply with the softest of tones. She hoped her answer would satisfy Kurei. Though if she were asked what she was doing here, in the middle of nowhere and late at night, and all alone, she’d blame her foster father. It was all Mister Mori’s fault.

۞۞۞۞

five years ago…

Diamond Suzanno was one of the most famous names in the fashion industry and was ran by a married couple from Japan. They produced clothes that were fresh, innovative and Avant garde. They rivaled the shoppes in Via Monte Napoleone, and generated an income that most humans can only dream about. There was nothing more that the couple could ever wish for.

The past ten years were the best ten years of their lives. At that time, they were already married for more than a year and working at entry level jobs. They didn’t care about the low pay for as long as they were with each other. Haruka was very frail, but she was the most beautiful and most inspiring woman in the world. She was just starting her modeling career when they got married, but she had no regrets because it meant that she would be married to the love of her life, Yasuke.

Yasuke came from a middle class family but he opted out of the family business because he didn’t enjoy boardroom politics. So instead, he worked as a technical assistant for the editor-in-chief of a pop fashion magazine in Japan. This meant that his job was to make coffee, get their lunch, and make sure all the clothes were always there for photo shoots. It didn’t pay well, but he was happy to have enough time for his craft, which was sketching clothes. The best part of that year was when Haruka took a year off to give birth to their lucky charm.

Ever since she was born, it seemed like Yasuke and Haruka could do no wrong. Yasuke received a scholarship for a fashion design program in Italy. Haruka had her hands full with all the modeling jobs in Paris, Milan, and London. It all happened a day after their lucky charm was born. Agents started calling them and quoting the best contracts. Because of that, they cherished her so much for bringing them all the fortune in the world.

۞۞۞۞

“Okaasama!!! Otousama!!!”, echoed a tiny voice in the huge atelier of Diamond Suzanno. Shortly after, a slim girl with short brown hair started running through the designers to head up to the second floor of the atelier and greeted a couple who was busy at work. She flashed a huge smile on her face as she showed them her test papers with huge ‘A+’ and ‘A’ marks on them. Her amber eyes looked quietly at both the adults until one of them looked at her.

Suddenly, a few moments later, a light chuckle came from the man and then followed by the woman. They both looked at the 9-year old girl with huge smiles on their faces. “You seem very happy, Kurenai”, said Haruka.

Kurenai nodded and found a space between both her parents to show more of her excellent marks. She enjoyed making her parents happy with her grades. They were always so busy with work so she didn’t want to burden them with low grades.

“Oh no”, Haruka said with a pretentiously worried tone. “Does this mean we have to treat her to some of her favorite cakes?”, she asked her husband. Kurenai’s gaze immediately widened as she turned to her father. She did her best not to bounce on place as her excitement mounted.

“I don’t know, our lucky charm might gain too much weight”, Yasuke said jokingly. “We don’t want her to be unattractive”

Kurenai puffed her face at her father. “I want cake”, she demanded. She then looked at her mother hoping for reconsideration. However, looking at Haruka who was very slim due to her well-managed diet, Kurenai knew that her mother would not agree to Kurenai gaining weight. She rarely ate cake and stayed slim because of it. As her daughter, the same was expected of Kurenai - At least, this was how she saw it. Kurenai had to stay beautiful, smart, elegant and proper, just like her mother.

“…but I really want cake”, she said with her voice dwindling. Somehow, the prospect of getting some cake seemed bleak. Her amber eyes fell to the floor with a defeated expression on her face.

A few moments later, Kurenai was caught in between her parents’ arms and she felt their cheeks rubbing against hers. They cuddled her and laughed boisterously. “Oh Kurenai”, her mother started. “You’re too precious and cute”, her father continued. She looked at both of them with a confused expression.

“Cake?”, she asked expectantly. In response, both of her parents nodded. Yasuke carried her whilst Haruka took both their coats from the rack. “Let’s have all the cake you want”, said Haruka.

۞۞۞۞
Four years from present time

“Okaasama!!! Otousama!!!”, screamed Kurenai with tears in her eyes. She can barely see them. Lots of strong and scary men were beating them up not far from where Kurenai was pinned. Their atelier was burning behind her and a man had his shoe on her face and pushed her further into the ground. She can hear her parents scream for help but no one was coming to their aid. Instead she watched as their neighbors’ windows and doors closed on the scene.

How did a beautiful night turn so horribly wrong? Just a few hours ago, her family was holding a private party in celebration of Kurenai’s latest achievement. She won the model student of the year award. She was so happy. One of the judges even came over to congratulate her personally.

They should have kept their doors closed to that judge. He was a model citizen, billionaire, and had lots of charities which he was actively involved in. He was even nice enough to adopt an orphan and raise the child like his own son. Yet, he had the cruelest of smiles. They should never have allowed Mister Mori to enter their atelier.

She wanted to run to her parents but guns were pointed at her and Mister Mori’s heel pressed her head on the streets. “Please, please stop this”, she begged. She looked up at him to beg for his indulgence. Instead, she saw the most sadistic expression she’s ever seen meet her gaze. A few moments later Mister Mori took away her shoe from her face. For an instant, Kurenai was happy. She had hope. She was finally free to run to her parents. They were spared.

Before she could lift her body from the ground, there was an eerie laughter. In an instant, Mister Mori’s foot connected with her abdomen and threw her back a few spaces. She heard a couple of her bones crack in disagreement as she fell once more to the ground. Kurenai tried to reach for the tender area with her hands, but instead brought both hands to her mouth as she spewed blood all over the asphalt. For someone who has never experienced any form of pain from punishment from her parents, or any form of inflicted physical injuries, the feeling was magnified and more traumatizing.

“Who are you to give me orders, child?!”, the man yelled. His eyes widened curiously at her. He raised his leg at an angle and repeatedly kicked Kurenai on the same spot he did before. She screamed in pain but it was soon muffled by the blood on her throat.

After several moments, Mister Mori stopped. Kurenai lay motionless on the ground and struggled for breath. Kurenai’s respiratory tract was blocked by some of her own blood and her lungs refused to expand properly in fear of grinding against the shards of her broken ribs. Her long brown hair was drenched in her own blood which sickened her. Kurenai's vision was growing dim but she noticed the men surrounding her parents stopped the beating as well. ‘Are we safe now?’, she wondered. 'Is it finally over?'

“Tell me how much you love your parents”, the man said with an ominous tone and malicious intent in his eyes. “What will you do to keep them alive?”

۞۞۞۞
Present Time

Kurei looked at Kurenai with a raised brow. “Who picks flowers at 4am?”, he retorted with a hint of irritation in his tone. That smile was the most irritating thing in the world for Kurei. She always looked softly at him and he detested it. There was something very wrong with this woman. At one point she was crying in fear and now she was all smiles. Didn’t she fear him?

“Should there be a specific time when I can pick roses?”, she hummed happily walking closer to him after she had picked up the roses she plucked earlier.

He was not afraid of her, so Kurei did not move. Instead his gaze intensified against hers. “Not 4am”, he said coldly. It was a faulty argument, but he was not going to lose to her. He folded his arms in front of his chest to form a physical barrier – his way of telling her not to come any closer.

“Thank you for your concern”, she said as she urged him to start walking back with her. “Nobody will touch me for as long as I remain within the compound and picking flowers won’t…”, she paused and looked at him with judging eyes. “..shouldn’t kill me. Don’t you think so?”, she said a bit amused. “Besides, why are you up so early? You don’t have any morning classes today, do you?”

Amethyst eyes looked at her scorned. He knew what she meant and there was no way he was admitting his fault. Instead, he huffed and walked at a faster pace going back to the mansion. He was not going to have any more of her mind games. He didn’t bother responding to her last query as well.

Kurenai effortlessly followed him and kept a smile on her face as she entered the mansion. She knew how fast Kurei could run and knew he was being a gentleman by keeping a pace which she could still follow. She was a little breathless, but she was still able to follow him with ease. Before Kurenai disappeared to the other room she called out his name. “Kurei”.

He was halfway through the marble staircase when he heard her, “Try to get some sleep, it’s 4am! Stop studying.”

He immediately turned around. ‘How did she know I haven’t slept? How did she know I was still studying?’, he wondered. He was prepared to prove her wrong but noticed she had already disappeared. That woman was strange and he hated her. She was not like his mother or foster mother. There was just something about her that completely irked Kurei. “Who does she think she is giving me an order like that?”, he grunted as he stomped his way up to his bedroom. Yet, the moment he entered his bedroom, he lifted his bedcovers and descended onto his bed and slept. “I hate her”

A Sweet Escape
by Timmy
Chapter I: The Quiet Night

( Part I )