Written by Anonymous
I can't accept this. Where did I go wrong? How did I fail? I stumbled back, or was I pushed? It didn't matter, pain erupted from my core. My hands grasped at my stomach, as if I could somehow stop the source of the pain. Shakily, I raised my hands from my stomach; they were dyed crimson. It felt as if time itself was beginning to slow. I was so close. The sound of metal pulled me back from my thoughts. All I could feel now was fear, uncertainty, shock.. and finally anger. Clenching my fists, I raised my head. His eyes gleamed, like a predator who has successfully trapped his prey. A smile crept on to his face, a sneer. This demon probably couldn't contain his amusement. Looking at me derisively, he simply started to chuckle. He brushed his white hair back, his cold blue eyes were full of anger. His pointed beard reached the middle of his open kimono, his body covered in tattoos. Once he told me all the stories to them, now he was just here to kill me. In his right hand he held a katana, the blade was covered in blood. My blood. "This is the end for you, Kyou," he said, his voice coated with venom. "I sincerely thank you for all the help you've given me and our family until now. However... I know what you tried to do. You've failed." His fist lashed out. Heat scorched the right side of my face and I fell back against the wall. "You were nothing before we found you! You would have rotted in the streets! All these years I spent raising you! We took care of you!" "This katana," he said as he raised it, pointing it straight at me, "You know what it's for. It only bleeds those that have betrayed us, betrayed me." At this point my anger was beginning to take over. Fight it! was all I could think. Fight the coldness rushing up my body, fight the dizziness that started to surround me, fight what seemed to be inevitable. I tried to open my mouth, instead I felt a rush of nausea. Falling down to my knees, I buckled over and vomited, noting the blood that was mixed in. The bastard took a step back, a disgusted look on his face. Struggling, I managed to get back on my feet. I took a step forward. It gave me strength. Time is what I needed, and it seemed short. If I can somehow get out of here... "Oyabun," I struggled at first to simply say that. "It's too late to--" He immediately stepped forward, I only saw a flash of steel. Pain erupted in my leg and I crumpled to the floor, all I could do was scream. I was now far past beyond denying the reality in front of me. It seemed like he was content in letting me suffer, he just stood over me. Finally, the pain started to wade. Maybe I had lost just too much blood, the coldness that crept up on me was slowly turning to numbness. That did not stop my anger. My anger at myself for getting caught, my anger for not being able to save my brother all those years ago, my anger that I just couldn't get away from this man or the yakuza he controlled. Finding strength in my anger, I glared at him. From the start, I was probably nothing more than a pawn to him. If I had succeeded, it would've destroyed him, his whole operation. All the years of planning, all the money, deceit, murder. I had sold practically my soul to this man, this devil. I had long ago squashed anything that remained human to become the devils right hand man, just to destroy him. "Not here," I managed to speak, blood and saliva flowing down the sides of my mouth. "I will not.. die here!" I roared. Now, I was more beast than man. Everything in me screamed that I had to survive, had to get away, and squash the part of me that knows that this is where I'll die. I quickly raised my arms and grabbed his legs, pulling them from underneath him. He fell! I couldn't even feel the pain in my gut or in my legs. I threw myself on him, wrapping my hands around his neck. Entrapped by fury, I started to squeeze as hard as I could. Bang I lost my strength, I looked up. Someone in the doorway. I didn't even consider that we weren't alone here, my focus was entirely on him. He's never without his own loyal guards, they were just out of sight. I fell to the side, the old man pushed me off and got up, brushing off his clothes as if trash had fallen on him. He shook his head and raised the katana once more. It all seemed to happen slowly and a million thoughts were rushing through my mind. How could I get out of this? Can I turn this around? If I could just escape, I could find help and then finish this once and for all. This can't be happening, this just a dream.. a dream! I was rejecting reality again. What else could I do? I dreamed of crushing this man, the devil who destroyed my only family. I worked hard, raised my way through the ranks, all to exact my vengeance. It ends like this? "Ha.." I must be mad. "Ha.. ha.. hahaha!" This can't end here. I won't let it. My anger and madness seem to boil together. I don't care! Even if I had to sell my soul to an actual devil, I won't let it end here! "Kyou," As soon as he said my name, my eyes began to focus again. The sound of his voice fueled my hatred to give me the strength to glare at him. I'll deny you until it's over. I'll beg, I'll plead, I won't let this hatred go! "Say hello to Yoshida in hell for me." I want to kill him. I want to kill him. I want to kill him! The sword came down fast. For a fraction of a moment, I felt the edge of the steel on my neck. I screamed. Someone else also screamed. Bright light assaulted my eyes, even though it was raining only moments ago. I was lying on a mattress, there were blankets on top of me, as if I was just sleeping. My eyes adjusted to the light and I looked around. Though I was somewhere else, this room gave me a strong feeling of familiarity. "I was so sure I was I was dead," I sighed. That thought gave me chills and panic raced up my spine. I lifted my shirt to inspect myself. There wasn't a sword wound, even though I was surely run through by that blade. I put my shirt back down confused, I checked my legs and there were no wounds either. Holding my head in my hands, all I could feel was pain and the feeling that something just doesn't feel right. I shook my head, trying to dispel the pain, drowsiness, and dizziness . That only seemed to agitate it, though, as I found myself becoming sicker. I got up, unsteadily, and raced outside the room I was in. I was sure I didn't know where I was but I knew just where I was going, easily finding the bathroom just down the hall. After some painful dry heaving, the nausea seemed to fade. The pain in my head seemed steadfast though. With a sigh, I closed the toilet and sat down. Grasping my head with my hands, I tried to think. Was that a dream? Was I really going to fail? Where the hell am I anyway? Where am I and how did I get here? Another sigh, I stood up and walked to the sink, filling my hands with cold water and washed my face. The cold seemed to dispel some of my headache. Grabbing a towel, I dried myself. "Nii-san!" A voice called. "Where did you go?" All the dizziness and pain faded at once. Instead, shock filled me. I couldn't believe the voice I was hearing. I heard footsteps and they were running down the hall, closer to me. "Nii-san! There you are," It was a boy, he looked to be about eleven years old. His hair was jet black as was his eyes. He was grinning at me but all I could do was stare at him. I couldn't understand what he was doing there. "I heard you scream while I was in the kitchen, you really scared me! Anyway, the cook said breakfast is almost ready so-- Nii-san? Are you okay?" I couldn't answer him. I finally glanced in the mirror. It was me, or rather a 15 year old me. My hand reached up and I brushed the left side of my face, not believing what I was seeing. A few years ago I was ambushed. I barely made my escape, but I had almost lost my eye to the slash of a katana. The scar was gone, as if it was never there. I tugged lightly at my hair, this was around the time I started to dye my hair blonde. The grunts here said it would make me look more intimidating. My mind started to race again, I couldn't comprehend what had happened. I'm back to being 15? Was the last 16 years of my life a dream? Did I dream everything? "Nii-san!" A voice jerked me from my thoughts. I looked over to the boy in the doorway. . He looked a little upset, he probably thought I was ignoring him. I approached him and knelt down in front of him. I put my hands on his shoulder. Tears started to well up in my eyes. I mumbled his name. Yoshida. This is reality, I'm somehow here. Most importantly, my brother is here with me too. He reacted with a headbutt and I fell backwards. Damn that hurt! "Nii-san, hurry up or you won't get a chance to eat!" He walked off. My head was once again throbbing but I couldn't help but grin. Something.. Something has happened! I got sent back or all of that was one horrible dream. I don't care which one it is, but I'm glad to be here! Laughter started to creep up. My little brother was with me again! A thought came to my mind and I stopped laughing. What if I am dead? Is this heaven? Returning to the mirror, I gazed at myself. Doubts were starting to win over, maybe I was still there, dying. This could all just be a hallucination as I lay there. I couldn't find an answer, my brain was on overtime so I made the obvious choice and slammed my head into the the mirror. It cracked, some shards fell, a thin stream blood trickled down my face. "What's going on..?" I spoke, it was more pleading than anything. "Was I... really sent back in time? Or was it all a dream?" I whispered to myself, begging for an answer. "Oh? Kyou, are you alright?" That voice sturdied me, I slowly looked over from the sink. Too busy questioning myself and what's happened, I didn't notice someone else coming down the hallway. He grabbed a a first aid kit from the cabinet and walked towards me. Oyaji, head of the family. The old bastard was right in front of me. "I don't know what happened but you start high school in a week," He said, slightly bemused, as he cleaned my injury. After he was finished, he placed a band-aid on my forehead and put the kit back where it was. With a chuckle, he ruffled my hair. Everything in me was screaming to jump on this man, to wring the life from his body. A small sound made me abandon those thoughts. I gazed behind him to see one of his personal guard. I swore to myself in my thoughts. Even if it looks like he's alone, he won't be. I had to control my hostility. "You two are always so brash but I know you're also smart. We all have high hopes for you, Kyou. Take care of yourself." Speaking as if he was a father figure, his words were warm, somewhat chiding. I couldn't raise my eyes to meet his, though. My eyes, my heart, everything burned. Whether or not it was a dream, a premonition, or I got sent back in time, I couldn't escape this hatred I felt for him. "Don't keep your little brother waiting!" He said with a chuckle, unperturbed by my silence. He gave me a hard pat on the back and I stumbled out of the bathroom as he continued down the hallway behind me. I clenched my fists, trying to calm myself as I walked onward. "I'm back in the main house," I mumbled. I passed a calendar and it confirmed my thoughts. It was March in the year 2000. A sigh escapes my lips. It was a bright day outside, hardly a cloud in the sky. There was no beauty in this for me, though. I felt pangs of anger, dread, and uncertainty. I started to shake again. I could still feel the moment I was supposedly killed, the steel against my neck. I buried my face in my palms, my nails digging into my skin. Then, I fell. I tried to grab on to something, but there was nothing to grab. All around me was darkness. I came to a stop before I even let out a scream. Now, I was just floating in this pitch black abyss. "What the fuck is going on?!" I screamed at the darkness. "Is that any way to speak to your guarantor?" The darkness responded. It sounded like a girl but there was no source to the voice, it was like it came from all around me. "What's going on? Who are you?!" Though I heard and could see nothing, I felt like the darkness was chuckling to itself. It spoke only a single word in response. "Akuma." Flames erupted in the darkness above me. The flames took the shape of a crude, horrific face. An evil, smiling face that you'd normally carve onto a pumpkin for Halloween. I should have felt afraid but I didn't. The flames condensed into a pyre just around me. I was going to scream but I felt no heat, the flames quickly dispersed soon after. I felt a weight on me. Now, there was just this girl straddling me. Her hair was flowing down her back, the color of crimson. Her eyes looked normal but seemed to burn into me. She looked like she was the same age as me and clad in a what looked like a school uniform. In a normal would have thought that she would even be cute, but this situation was far beyond normal. A smile came across her lips and she leaned into me, I felt like was paralyzed. She caressed my face with her fingers. "Human, your hatred has captured my interest." She said it almost seductively, her voice clear. "I heard your begging, your pleading." I wanted to say something but I couldn't, she placed her index finger on my lips. "I answered. I gave you that second chance." Her face was so close to mine now, I could feel her breathing and it felt like it was going to burn me. "To make things interesting for me our contract is little more than a bet. Kill the man you so wrongly considered a devil. Should you accomplish this, I'll let you continue to live and take his soul for myself. If you fail, though..." Her voice trailed off and she held my face with both hands. Now, her eyes burned with hellfire. She didn't finish her sentence but she didn't need to, I understood in that moment. Immediately after, I felt my back hit something hard. Rubbing the back of my head, I glanced around and realized I was back in the hallway where I got transported from. She was still on top of me though. "I look forward to seeing how this ends," she spoke lightly, with a wink. She moved to get up but her foot got caught under me and she hit the ground face first. I wasn't sure what to feel. The thought that I might have been dreaming started to surface again. "Are you alright..?" She stood up rigidly and shakily turned to face me. The thought that she was angry at me crossed my mind but the deep red look on her face showed me she was embarrassed. I almost laughed at the sight. After what I had just gone through, though, I decided it would be a good idea to say nothing. Giving me one last haughty glare, she disappeared in a puff of flame. I sighed as I stood up. "An akuma that gets embarrassed..?" Scratching my head, I was becoming more and more sure that I might be dreaming. "Nii-san?" Looking up the sound of the voice I saw Yoshida standing in the kitchen doors, concern on his face. I exhaled loudly and smiled for him. Even if this is a dream, I won't give up here. "I'm alright," I said as I approached him and put a hand on his head. "I just had... a weird dream." He smiled, seemingly relieved as I messed with his hair. The smile I plastered on my face quickly became the real thing. I really was given another chance, even if it was from an akuma. I led my brother into the kitchen, my arm around his shoulder. I still had many more questions, but with him right here beside me I also started to feel the resolve solidify within me. This time I won't fail. This time, I'll save us both.