+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I sat alone in the bar, covered by the hazel golden light of the lamp above me. My arms held my head as I rested my forehead on them and sighed loudly. I was still guilty about what had happened earlier with the others and I’m sure Nyan-nyan was sulking about it, too.
I didn’t even get to apologize…
“What were you thinking?!”
I bet she hates me now… “Korisu?” I heard a familiar, high-pitched voice call my name. I looked up and found the very owner of the strawberry voice, standing in front of me smiling.
“Tomomi…”
She sat down beside of me, playing with my empty drink glass. Of course, I knew it had to be her. Looking at her(at least in the outfit and wig she was wearing right now), you’d at first think she’s a guy. But, hear her voice and you instantly know. I mean, why else? She does work here; at a
danso cafe.
“What’s wrong? You look depressed.”
“A lot happened earlier today…” I said, looking down. “You probably wouldn’t wanna hear.”
She giggled; she knew I was just being modest. “I’ve got time.”
I told her everything that happened when I first met Haruna up to what happened a few hours ago. She just sat and listened to me, nodding and often asking questions, but, she mostly stayed silent and listened. Listened, with a slight smile on her face.
“And, then I just ran off. I’m pretty sure Haruna left and went back home, too.”
“It was that bad, huh?”
“Yeah…” I sunk into my chair. “I feel pretty bad about it….”
“Don’t be. It’s not your fault,” she said sweetly, taking my hand.
“But, still…”
“Look, if Haruna is as a good a friend you say she is, I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”
“You think?”
“Definitely.”
I smiled. “Thanks, Tomomi.”
“Chiyuu~” She made the adorable sound that makes me giggle. “Hey, I gotta get back to work, okay?”
“Okay.”
I was about to leave, when…
“Oh! Wait.” I reached into my bag and handed her a CD case. “Here. This is the artist I recommended you.”
“Ah, thanks. I’ll listen to it later.”
“Alright. Bye.”
“Bye~.”
After I paid and left the restaurant, I started to head back home, but then I got a text from Mayu.
“Yuko-chan, can you meet over at my place? I think it’s time to explain ANGELs to Acchan and Yukirin. -Mayu.” “Alright…” I sighed out loud.
I followed the directions Mayu texted me to her house. Mayu’s place was so fancy; she’s so lucky.
I saw Acchan and Yukirin already talking to Mayu, but they were obviously still very confused about what was happening.
“So… explain to us again,” Acchan said.
“Well, I may not look it, but I’m over 75 years old!” I said, raising my arm. “And, Mayu is actually 50!”
“Uh, yeah, we kinda got that. But, why did you guys not tell us?”
“The truth is, I had to do it to protect you.”
“Protect us?”
“The ANGELs must keep themselves hidden to protect people. There are bad people who want to use us for evil things and hurt us.”
“I just wanted to live a normal life, like humans. I didn’t want to risk it.”
“There are some ANGELs who do let a few people know their identity. A friend of mine told one of her classmates, and she’s kept it secret for her. We only tell people we can really trust.”
“Don’t worry, Mayuyu.” Acchan got up and took her hands. “You can trust us.”
“Yeah, your secret’s safe.”
“Ufufu… thank you.”
“So, who were those girls?” Yuki asked.
“I’m not sure. But, they probably want to cut off all the other Links and Chains.”
“Links?”
“Chains?”
“The elixir we use to save humans from death connects our souls into one being, forming a contract. The human is called a ‘Link,’ and once the contract is formed, their soul in bound by the ANGEL’s, so they don’t cross over into the other world.”
“A.K.A. ‘Afterlife’,” I chuckled.
“The ANGEL is called the ‘Chain’ in this situation. They’re what connects the two and bind them together.”
“So, that means, if the ANGEL dies, the Link’s soul will be released from the contract and they’ll disappear.”
“But, if the Link dies first, the ANGEL’s soul won’t die off. The contract between them will break and their power level will decrease until they can find a new soul.”
Acchan just crossed her arms, nodding as she absorbed all the information in, while Yuki leaned forward in her chair and tapped her bottom lip slightly. “So… basically, they wanna kill off all the ANGELs and whoevers connected with them.”
“Who or what would do such a thing?”
“No clue.”
I got worried and decided to call Haruna to see if she was okay.
“Mayu, can I use your phone?”
“Yeah, it’s over there,” she said pointing over to the kitchen counter. I went over and dialed in the number to our house. The only thing I heard was the monotone ringing of the other line, left unanswered.
Haruna, pick up… I held my chest, praying to hear her sweet voice. I wanted to apologize for everything, never keep anything from her again, and have her finally accept me…
But, nothing.
“She must not be home yet.”
“Well, it’s already late, so how about we all sleepover here for the night.”
“Sure.”
“Lemme call my dad.”
Everyone was ecstatic, chatting among themselves, while I just listened to the flat noise continue.
“The number you dialed is currently unavailable. Please leave a message after the tone.” *BEEP* “Hey, Nyan-nyan? Where are you? Can you call me when you get back? I’m sorry… I-I’m… really sorry…”
*BEEP* Haruna…
Tomomi’s POV “Kasai, two more Orange Lilies at Table 2!”
“Hai~!”
“Hey, Kasai, can you help me with this?”
“Hai~!”
“Kasai-kun~! Send these meals to Tables 5 and 7!”
“Hai~!”
My name is Kasai Tomomi. I work at the Queen Dolce III Café & Bar in New Tokyo, and, yes, it’s the same danso cafe that stole women’s hearts centuries ago.
Basically, all I have to do is go around waiting tables and serving young ladies and older men dressed as an ikemen, girly-boy, high school student named, respectively, Chiyuu. Don’t get me wrong. It seems hectic, me handling so much, but it’s a lot more fun than it looks. I get to meet all these nice people who tell me funny stories, and my best friends always come and see me.
Speaking of which...
“Min, min, min~”
“Natsumin!”
“Hey, Tomo~mi-chan--oops! I mean, Chiyuu-kun.”
“Haha, I’m on my break right now, Natsumin. You can just call me Tomo~mi.”
I sat down at her table, putting my bag down while I talked and listened to her.
“Nee, did you see what happened today?”
“At the 109? Yeah, I saw.”
“Yuko was here earlier. She said she and some of her new friends were out shopping when it happened.”
“That’s scary!”
I rested my elbows on the table, the back of my hands holding my cheeks. “I’m just glad they’re safe,” I sighed out.
“Yuko-chan’s an ANGEL, too, right?”
“Yeah, but there was another ANGEL, Mayu-chan, who saved them.”
“Oh…”
Me and Natsumi are the only ones who know Yuko’s secret.
...Actually, I found out when I first met Yuko. She told me.
Flashback It all started thirteen years ago. I was nine when it happened. A car came without me knowing and took my life. Yuko said my child body was far from saving because of the damage, so they put my heart into a new, adult body. I was an ANGEL.
“This is you from now on, Tomomi.” I went to high school and met Natsumi. She’s the only one who knows about me and Yuko. I never really saw Yuko too much after graduating, but we often keep in touch.
“You’re my friend, Tomomi. I won’t leave you.” End of Flashback I decided to try and take my mind off things and went into the restroom. I unknowingly brought my bag in and dropped something. When I looked, I saw a clear, plastic case with a black CD that gleamed in the unique restroom lighting.
“This CD…”
Natsumi came in again and saw me looking at the CD case.
“What’s that?”
“Oh, Yuko gave this to me. It’s a singer she recommended me.”
“Ooh~ I wanna hear it!”
She took out her CD player and placed the black disc inside. Music started playing and she smiled widely.
“OMG, I know this!”
“You do?”
“Her name is Tomochin; she’s one of the biggest pop stars in the world!”
Tomochin?
“Dear J ♪ Furi muita kimi wa ♪” Natsumi started dancing while singing to the song. She’s really good, y’know. She goes to a really good dance school.
“You are J ♪ Utsukushi sugite ♪” “Nee, Natsumin…”
“Hm?” She stopped dancing and looked at me.
“What’s her last name?”
“Hm… I don’t really remember.”
Tomochin… I turned on the sink and started washing my hands, but that name still echoed in my head. The music became completely drowned out and as I saw myself in the mirror, I could see myself getting younger. Those days… The time I had with her; when I was just a normal human. I can still see her, hear her.
I wonder... how she’s doing… Tomo….
“Tomo!”
“Hm? What is it, Chiyuu?”
“When Tomo~mi grows up big, she’s gonna be a big star!”
“Really?”
“Yeah, and she wants Tomo to support her, too!”
“OK, Then, Tomo’s gonna become a star, too.”
…But… that didn’t happen... for me…. “Tomo~mi-chan?”
Natsumi’s voice sounded again and broke me out of my trance. I felt the icy, cold sink water running down my hand. She turned off the music and looked at me worriedly.
“Tomo~mi-chan, you okay?”
“I-I’m fine…” I said, trying to cover things up.
“You sure? You’re not sick or anything, are you?”
“No. I’m fine, really.” I took the CD back and put it in my purse. “I’ve gotta get back to work.”
“Uh, okay…”
I dried my hands off and bowed at her slightly before leaving.
“Kasai, can you take care of the counter?”
I slapped my cheeks a few times before sighing and putting a smile back on my face. “Sure. I can do that.”
Third Person POV The Sanshou Sisters have returned to their home, grieving over the loss they just faced from Mayu. Myao angrily punched the wall.
“Damn ANGEL!”
“Even though we are Dark ANGELs created by Her Majesty, we indeed faced a formidable opponent,” Manamana said before sipping her tea. Myao growled at her comment, the awful memory playing in her head. She punched the wall in the exact same spot. Rabutan was busy stuffing her face with cookies.
“Shuch foo juz chee shink chee ish(Just who does she think she is)?!” she said with her mouth full.
Myao gritted her teeth in anger. “We’ll get ‘em next time.”
“Hahahaha. You?!” They heard someone behind them and turned to see a girl with short, black hair.
“Yuka-san…”
“Y’all don’t know the first thing about those humans,” Yuka said in her signature Osaka dialect.
“Did you really think you stood a chance against those ANGELs?” a girl with long, orange hair said, behind her.
“Hey, don’t underestimate us just cuz we’re small!” Myao prepared to punch Yuka, but she blocked it and twisted her arm behind her back, pinning her to the ground.
“Can y’all really call yourselves the Sanshou Sisters?” the Osaka Dark ANGEL whispered in her ear.
Myao lit her arm up in flames, causing Yuka to retract from her.
“Don’t mess with us just cuz we’re kids…”
Yuka snarled and walked back to her sister’s side.
“Why are you two here?”
“We heard about your little brawl with the ANGEL. We wanted to give you something to help in your next battle.”
“Maigh shug jee misshon du chuu(Why should we listen to you)?” Rabutan pouted, still with cookies in her mouth.
“Because, if you follow our advice, you will surely beat her.”
Their eyes widened in interest. Myao slowly turned around to face the two again.
“Keep talkin’...”
The fanged girl pulled something out of her pocket. A handful of pink tinted seeds.
“What are those?”
“Poppies.”
The three girls looked up at her, confused.
“Poppies?” they harmonized. Umechan nodded her head, then crushed the seeds in her hand. When she opened her palm again, it was filled with pink-orange colored poppies.
“The poppies’ scent attracts anyone and everyone who smells them. They lure a human into a sweet dream and sap their energy until there’s nothing left.” She took a few petals and blew them into Manamana’s parasol. “If you can drain the energy of those weakling humans and that oh so perfect ANGEL, everyone else on Earth will be putty in our hands.”
The three smiled.
“So… that means, if we beat her…”
“Guess y’all will be able to rank up to a higher status.”
The orange haired Dark ANGEL blew more of the petals onto their weapons and the girls giggled with glee.
“We were just passing by here.”
“We were just playing here as usual.” Myao said nodding. “We weren’t asked to take care of that deadbeat ANGEL or anything.”
The other two nodded and skipped back off into their childlike wonderland.
Yuka chuckled. “People think out loud a lot lately.”
Her elder sister chuckled and walked off.
“Nee, Umechan?”
“Hm?” She looked back at her.
“Ya really think it was alright to give ‘em the poppies?”
Umechan giggled softly and patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry. It’s not like they’ll really beat that ANGEL. And, if they do lose, we’ll just act like nothing happened and leave them to rot.”
Yuka smiled evily.
“C’mon.
She’s waiting for us.”
Yuko’s POV Everyone had already fallen asleep, so I decided to take my chance and sneak back to mine and Haruna’s place. I need to apologize now before things get worse. As I got to the door, I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I quickly turned to see it was just Mayu.
“Where are you going?” she softly asked.
“I’m going home to check on Haruna.” I was about to leave, but she grabbed my arm.
“Can I check something first?”
“Eh?”
She pulled my arm and brought me outside to an old door on the side of her house. She opened it and lead me down a flight of stairs to a metallic door that looked like a safe. She typed in a code in the padlock and it opened, revealing a weird room. It looked like a mad scientist’s lab you’d see in those sci-fi or horror movies… from the future.
“Did you… make all this?”
“The basement was like this when I bought the house. I just made a few adjustments to help with my research.”
I looked at her, my eyebrow raised. “How rich are you?”
She set a tablecloth on top of a large table and looked at me.
“Lay down.”
Huh? My finger went up and pointed at me.
“Yes, you. C’mon, it won’t hurt.”
“That’s what all the mad scientists say,” I murmured under my breath.
“I heard that loud and clear, y’know.”
Ah… I forgot she had an acute sense of hearing. Most ANGELs do.
I sighed and laid down on the table, still scared at what she was going to do. She started up a computer at her research table and typed in a few things. She was going so fast, and was so concentrated. “Um… M-Mayu, what are--”
“SHHHH!!!” My head popped away from looking at her and I was back to staring at the pitch black ceiling that looked like an abyss I had fallen from. “Yosh…”
She pushed a button and a few laser lights started scanning my body, all of them scrolling down and sending a ticklish feeling on my skin, then back up and sending the intense heat of it to my head, making unable to control my laughter.
“Hold still. Almost…”
I pursed my lips, trying to hold in my snickers, and after a few short seconds, it was over.
“Done.”
I heaved a heavy sigh and sat up on the table. It felt like I was dancing way too hard and burned off most of my energy. She brought up a scan on a large screen beside us. It was my endoskeleton. It was glowing all sorts of colors, like a thermal camera took a picture of me. Mayu put her hand on her chin, like a genius mad scientist would.
“Just as I thought…”
“What?”
“There had to be a reason why your energy waves were so weak when I met you. You said you couldn’t control your powers. What exactly did you mean by that?”
I flinched a bit, looking at my scanning again.
“Well… It’s more like I can’t access them. Whenever I try, all my energy will just build up and be released all in one place, and that causes them to go wild.”
“Go wild… What does that mean?”
“For me, um… mostly minor explosions.”
“Well, you’re able to retain some psychic ability, since you can talk to animals and sense ANGELs, including me. And, during the scan, you laughed, which is a good sign of your energy’s radiation balance,” she said typing in some more things on her computer.
“Then, what’s wrong with me?”
She turned in her seat and crossed her arms. “It’s most likely something disrupted your system long ago and caused a blockage. It’s been inside of you a long time, so it was most likely the reason. Tell me, have you been exposed to abnormal radiation, strong electromagnetic waves, or toxic chemicals?”
Hm… Electromagnetic waves? Now, that I think about it… there was one time.
“...Almost 26 years ago…. in the research facility I was made… there was an explosion…”
“A nuclear explosion, probably.”
“When I came to, I was in a new facility… and I was never able to use my powers again… I had rehabilitation done to heal some injured parts and a few repairs to regain some of them, but… for any others, they were just…”
I was unstable…
Mayu smiled and nodded her head. “Well, there may be a solution. This.” She pointed at the scanning of where my heart was.
“My heart?”
“Your soul, to be exact.”
She came up beside of me and whispered in my ear.
“When you were scared and clinging onto Haruna yesterday, were your heartbeats synchronized?” Her question made me blush.
But, now that I remember…
“...No. Not really. Hers was… slightly off from mine.”
“You two formed a contract, didn’t you?”
"Ah..."
How did she know?! “That has to be it! I saw the fire two days ago at Haruna’s building. There was NO WAY she could’ve survived. And, since you two happened to meet that same night, that’s the only logical explanation. Am I right?”
She seriously sounds like the guy from that “Galileo” drama; a mad genius indeed.
“Y-yes….”
“Ha! I KNEW it!”
“Um, how does this help?”
“It’s Haruna. She hasn’t accepted the contract fully. Her subconscious is still refusing it without her knowing. If you can get her to accept it out loud, her conscious and subconscious will finish the process completely.”
“And restore my powers?”
“I’m certain.”
I cheered inside, a wide smile on my face. “Thank you, Mayu. I’m gonna go see Haruna.”
“Okay.” I got up and started to leave, then turned and saw her smile. “Good luck.”
“Un!”
I ran out, headed straight back home to see my sweetheart. I would apologize, and I would finally be happy again. After so long, I can be happy…
Then, while I was running, I saw something. No…. Someone. I didn’t know who at first… I squinted to try and see her figure in the dark. Normally, ANGELs can see in the dark, but that’s still not fully recovered for me yet.
She looks like… Huh? Isn’t that Oya-san, the student council president? What is she doing this late?
Someone with her, holding a big responsibility such as student council president, shouldn’t be out and about this late. Oya-san herself is a fun girl to be around, not too uptight or strict about anything, but… this is odd. And, the way she’s walking… It’s like she’s in a daze.
I’ve got a bad feeling about this… Still with a bad feeling in my gut, I gulped down my fear and slowly, silently followed her. I didn’t know where she was going or why, but I still don’t think this is normal. She just kept walking, not suspecting my presence. As we kept walking, I thought I saw a flower fall from the sky. It was a poppy flower.
Then, I heard that giggle… The childlike giggle that could only belong to those girls. And, what was creepier, the sound was swings, squeaking and creaking as the children swung on them.
Sanshou… Oya-san walked into an abandoned building, so I hid behind an alley and watched her. After a few minutes, I saw more pink and orange poppy petals. I looked up and saw Oya-san on the top of the building. The Sanshou girls were there, too, smiling at her. Manamana was spinning her parasol, making the petals flutter about. The three pointed to the edge of the building, making a surge of fear shock through my spine.
They’re gonna make her jump! I saw her slowly walk up and jump off. Before she fell, I rushed over and shot up into the air. I caught her in my arms and floated safely to the ground. She was asleep.
Sanshou, you’ll pay for this! I ran into the building and found a room filled with stuff animals, lace curtains, and anything you’d see in a little girl’s room. There was a table set up for a tea party, but no one was sitting down.
“Good evening.” I turned around and saw them inching closer to me, giggling among themselves.
“We can play here, right?”
I gripped my fists, I was ready to fight. They just giggled and Manamana blew a few poppy petals again. They blew right into me and brushed across my face.
Then, I felt something change in the atmosphere. The strong fragrance of the orange-pinkish flower was flowing into me, making me feel all… numb. I slowly fell to my knees holding my head. I could feel my breathing slow and become deeper, my heart rate decreasing to a relaxed, hypnotic rhythm. I slowly fell to my side. I was asleep, yet I wasn’t. I couldn’t think straight. It was so weird… My vision was slowly turning pink.
“....Ufufu… Pink~....”
My eyes were flickering a bit, my body slowly and surely growing warmer. It was like I was in a dream. I didn’t even flinch when I looked up and saw the three circled around me, smiling.
“The game starts here…” I heard one of them say.
Who…? Who is that? Where have I seen her before? I didn’t know, I didn’t care. I just giggled and slowly closed my eyes, falling into a blissful sleep and wonderful dream.
Haruna’s POV Today, a beautiful, sunny Saturday… But, I’m spending it indoors. I slept late, too, so it’s already 2:00. I heard the phone ring last night, but I didn’t pick it up. I heard Yuko’s voice, and it made me feel guilty for all those mean things I said to her.
Yuko…
“I’m…. useless.” I wonder if she’s okay… I hope she isn’t mad at me. I didn’t mean to say all that. It just… happened. I always talk before I think.
As I was thinking of all that had happened, my cell phone rang. I picked it up and saw it was Mayu.
“Moshi-moshi?”
“Haruna, is Yuko there? I called her cell, but she turned it off.” “Huh? N-no.”
“What?! She left early last night! How can she not be home?!” “Eh?” Hearing her weird conversation made me nervous and I sat up.
“We had a sleepover last night, and Yuko went home so she could talk to you. Did she leave?”
“No…. She…” My eyes widened. Fear was rushed inside of my body, realizing what might have happened to her last night while she was coming home. “She never came home…”
“WHAT?!” I could feel my heart pounding out of my chest; I’ve never felt like this with anyone before. Yuko was different.
What if she was… kidnapped?
“We need to look for her right now! I’ll start looking downtown with Acchan and Yukirin, you start searching for her up there. See if anyone might have seen her.” “Okay!”
Once I hung up, I instantly changed clothes and headed out. I hopped on my hoverbike and speeded down the street. I went from door-to-door, asking everyone if they had seen her, but they all had the same answer. “Oshima-san didn’t come back last night.” After that, I decided to check the streets and alleys, just in case she got drunk or was in a fight. But, no luck.
I kept searching, never stopping. The sun was starting to set. But, I had to keep going. I wasn’t going to stop until I found her. I could feel this heavy feeling inside my chest, increasing my grief. I held my tears inside and kept searching the city. Then, I got another call from Mayu.
“Haruna, where are you right now?” “Uhh, I’m near the large hotel next to an old ramen place. Where are you guys?”
“Not too far. We’re near an abandoned building near a playground.” “Playground?” When that word came in, I mentally slapped myself. Of course they’d hide near a playground; they’re little girls!
“It’s just a few blocks away. Hurry!” “Alright, I’m coming!”
I hurried to the building she told me about. When I got there, she and the others were waiting outside the building.
“Mayu!” I stopped in front of the building and saw a pink light coming from one of the windows. “Is she in there?”
“Probably.”
“I’ll stay out here, just in case the Sanshou Sisters come back,” Mayu said. “You guys go in and find Yuko.”
“Got it! Let’s go.”
Third Person POV As the others ran in, Mayu kept watch at the door, ready for when the girls would come. Then, right when she turned around, she felt something blow into her face. She coughed due to the sudden shock of wind, then she slowly started to feel dizzy. Her muscles were relaxing against her will and she had trouble keeping balance. When she looked up, her vision was all blurry and pink.
She saw three small figures in front of her, which she instantly knew were the Sanshou Sisters. She also thought she saw small flowers, their petals scattered in the air; poppies to be exact.
“It’s time for your punishment,” Myao said, but Mayu could only define it as gargling noises. Then, she felt her limp arms being grabbed by the two younger girls and she was dragged off somewhere, but she couldn’t find out where as her vision soon turned completely dark.
Haruna’s POV We ran up the stairs and found the door to the pink tinted room. We hurried in and saw Yuko sitting at the end of a long table. There were tea cups and sweets set up all around the table. And sitting at the other end was a yellow cat doll. Yuko was fast asleep, a neon pink teddy bear in her lap. She was tied to the table.
“Yuko-chan!” Acchan and Yuki hurriedly untied the rope around her while I started shaking her to wake her up.
“Yuko! Yuko, wake up!”
“Mmm, no~.... Mm, I can’t.. eat another bite….” She was talking in her sleep while bobbing her head a bit. Her hand was waving to no one in particular.
“C’mon, get a hold of yourself!”
Her eyes slowly opened and she looked at me. Her eyes were dizzy and very sleepy. She giggled.
“Nyan-nyan, look,” she said to the stuffed cat doll while pointing at me, “there’s a talking cat here~. Ufufufufu…”
“Mou~” I grabbed both of her shoulders and shook her harder. “Yuko! Wake! UP!”
But she didn’t listen to me at all. She was talking to the dolls like they were actual people, having conversations that only existed in her mind. I was calling to her more and more, but she didn’t even look up and acknowledge me.
“Ufufu… don’t worry, I won’t tell… hehehehehe…”
“Yuko, SNAP OUT OF IT!!!”
*Slap* Before I knew it, there was a red place on her cheek and her head hung low, the pink doll in her hands dropping to the ground. She groaned again and rubbed her eyes. When she opened them again, she was looking at me, wide awake, but still looking like she was drugged. She looked around, confused, one of her hands holding her sore cheek.
“Wha-? ..Nyan-nyan…? Wh-where are we…? Ow, my cheek hurts~...”
“No time to explain. Let’s go, Mayu’s waiting for us outside.”
She got up and started walking, but her legs were still wobbling and she fell to her knees.
“Mou~ my legs are still numb…” she whined slapping her legs. I held her arm and slowly helped her back up. We ran out of the room and hurried back outside the building. But… Mayu wasn’t here.
“Uh-oh…”
“Where’s Mayu?”
Somewhere behind us, we started hearing an old creaking sound followed by the familiar giggles of the Sanshou girls.
“Oh no. Mayu!”
We hurried over and saw them in the playground. Mayu was tied to a roundabout while the girls spun her around and beat her up. What was worse, she was just letting them beat her up and was dragging her feet in the dirt. I saw her eyes. She was drugged.
“Haha, serves you right!”
“You wanna play with us, right?”
“You’re enjoying this, right? Haha! You’re pathetic, ANGEL!”
Mayu… How can they do this? Myao stopped in front of her and punched her right in the face. “Lame!”
“Pitiful. Just pitiful.” Rabutan giggled.
Myao kicked her stomach and gathered the others over.
“Let’s take a souvenir photo.” Manamana pulled out a small camera and took a photo. After that, they returned to their positions and continued to spin her. They punched or kicked her whenever they came to their section, and Mayu just limply got dragged around.
“You want more?!”
“Hahaha, you’re weak!”
Myao stopped her again and grabbed her hair.
“Don’t mess with us!” she said before punching her again. Mayu’s head hung low and her hand which was tied up had let go of the bar. Her other arm was just limply hanging, swaying slowly.
“You’re finished…”
She were about to receive the final blow, but then me and Yuko ran up and stepped in front of her, protecting her. I obtained the powerful punch to my stomach and fell to the ground coughing.
“Nyan-nyan…”
“The hell are you doin’ here?”
“Yeah, you wanna play with us, too?”
Yuko looked at the girls angrily and growled. “I’m gonna get you for this! And I’m going all out!”
“Huh?”
“Mayu’s my friend… And, I’ll protect her… And Acchan… Yuki…” There was a long pause and she turned to look at me. “Haruna, too… You three should know what that’s like! You’d do anything for your friends!”
Yuko… “Friend?” The three started laughing, as if everything Yuko said was a joke. They kept laughing and laughing… Then, Rabutan kicked her stomach.
Manamana took out her parasol and held her chin. “What are you doing, using the word ‘friend’ in this day and age?”
Myao grabbed her hair and pulled her down to the ground. “You’ve seen way too many teenage dramas! You’re nothing but a weak, pathetic human. You serious about all this ‘friendship’ or whatever?!”
She punched Yuko right in the face and she hit the roundabout. They continued to punch and kick her, but then Yuko got mad and pushed them away. Her hands were balled into tight fists and she started fighting back. They kept dodging her and hitting her, but that only made her angrier and she continued to fight. She kept going and going, never stopping. That was real, serious anger.
“...Haru… na…” I heard Mayu’s hoarse voice call out to me. She was slowly waking up.
“Mayu!”
“Haruna… you need to… save Yuko…”
“Okay! Tell me what I need to do! I’ll do anything!”
“There’s only one way…”
I nodded. I don’t care what I have to do; if it means I can help Yuko fight, I’ll do it.
“You have to… accept the contract.”
“Eh?” What she said confused me again. "I thought when she saved me, I… I should’ve…."
“You alone can do it… It’s the.. only way…”
“But… how? Didn’t I already--?”
“You have to say it out loud... That’s the only way you can accept it...”
I turned back and saw Yuko. She was breathing heavy and had bruises on her face, blood dripping down her chin.
“What happens if I don’t?”
“....Something bad.”
Manamana seemed to hear us and she and Rabutan came to us. Mayu was getting beat up again by Rabutan, while Manamana got on top of me and started strangling my neck.
“You’re so troublesome!”
“Let’s just get rid of you two right now!”
Mayu coughed up blood and looked at me.
“Hurry, Haruna! Say it!”
I tried my best to breathe, doing all I could to shake her off me, but it wasn’t working.
“Haruna, if you don’t…” Mayu said again, still receiving heavy damage from the small girl. “Yuko will die…! And so will you!”
What?
“That’s the risk humans take when you form contracts with ANGELs. If they get killed, you’ll die too!”
I felt this strange rush of emotion hit me, making the thoughts in my head scatter. I didn’t have time to think, and looked over to Yuko. She was on the ground, Myao kicking her. She was coughing blood non-stop and was slowly losing consciousness. I felt my heart grow heavy, and in my panic, I let out one final scream.
“Yuko! I accept! I accept the contract!”
*BA-BUMP* I suddenly felt myself regain my energy and pushed Manamana off me. She flew back and hit her head on the roundabout.
“Itai~” She started crying like a little baby while holding her head. Her older sisters rushed to her side, trying to comfort her.
Then, when I looked over, Yuko slowly got up to her feet. She wiped the blood clean off her chin and took a deep breath. Gripping her fist, she raised her arm up and punched the ground. There was a huge rumbling beneath our feet, causing the Sanshou trio to stop and glance back at her. There was a large dent left where Yuko’s fist hit the ground so hard. She looked up at them. Her eyes were glowing a golden yellow color, like the sun.
“Wait, she’s an ANGEL too?!”
She smiled and walked over to punch her, but they quickly dodged her. Yuko just chuckled and looked at them with those intense, glowing eyes.
“You think you can stop me?” she said to them with a smile. She ran forward again and tackled Myao, but she pushed her off and got up to attack Mayu again. Mayu’s only solution was to kick her, but Rabutan and Manamana were on both sides of the roundabout, turning her to mess up her balance. Myao covered her leg in green flames and kicked her stomach, but Yuko stepped in front of her and protected her, stopping it on impact.
"Sugoi..."
“Mayu, you take care of the others. I got this one.”
“Why don’t you just--?” Rabutan was about to punch her again, but Yuko grabbed her arm and pushed her out of the way. She ran right into Manamana and caused them to both fall to the ground.
“The hell you doing?!”
“You were in the way, dammit!”
All of the sudden, the two girls started fighting. Myao had to come in and break them up, but ended up becoming part of the argument, too.
Guess even they have trouble working together… Then, Yuko moved over and Mayu sent a high kick to Myao. She pushed Rabutan in front of her to block her.
“What the heck?!”
“That’s what you get for being careless!”
Manamana got up and approached her. “Stop screwing around! What are you--?”
Mayu kicked the girl from behind. Then, Yuko elbowed her in the back and she fell beside Rabutan.
Myao shot Mayu an angry look. “Why you…!”
Mayu sent another kick to Myao, but she dodged it and glared at her.
“That was close, eh?” Her arm was coated in fire again and she prepared to punch her, but Yuko blocked it. Myao was able to punch her a few times, but she swung her arm out and almost hit her.
Now, Myao’s expression was looking a bit… scared. But, she didn’t show it and snickered.
“You should use your brains, y’know?”
Yuko about kicked her side, but she grabbed it and pulled her down. She turned back and coated her leg again, ready to kick Mayu, but I quickly grabbed it and held onto it hard. Even though it was on fire, I felt absolutely no pain, and I could feel I was holding onto her stronger than I normally would.
“Now, you can’t kick anymore…” Mayu chuckled.
Before Myao could punch her, Yuko quickly pulled Mayu’s arm and instantly broke the rope on her wrist. Myao’s arm was now twisted in the roundabout and she couldn’t get out.
“Guys! Help me out here!” she pleaded to her fallen comrades. They looked at each other and left.
“Yeah, right. Like we’ll help you!”
“Go to Hell!”
“Oi!!!”
Mayu strapped her arms under Yuko’s and flipped her up. Yuko’s leg raised up and she kicked Myao on top of the head, causing her to fall. She clutched her head while softly crying. Yuko dusted herself off watching her.
“What a crybaby…” she softly chuckled.
Myao got up, still holding her head, and left towards the direction her sisters went. Yuko and Mayu looked at each other, smiled, and high-fived.
Yuko came over and helped me up. “You okay?”
I just looked at her. I feel I’m on the verge of tears.
“Haruna…” She bit her lip and sighed heavily, probably trying to contain her own tears. “I--”
But, I hugged her as tight as I could, not wanting to let go.
“Wha…?”
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, Yuko!” I screamed into her shoulder, tears falling down my cheeks. “Please… Please forgive me… I didn’t mean any of that! Just please! Yuko, I…”
I didn’t know what else to say.
“...Thank you.” Yuko hugged back and patted my head. When we parted, I quickly dried off my tears and took in a deep breath.
“You okay?”
“Uh-huh.” She stretched her arms and smiled. “Better than ever.”
“Good.” I hugged her again, resting my head on top of hers.
Yuko giggled, placing her forehead on my shoulder. “This height is perfect~.”
“Hehehe…” I didn’t realize at first, but Acchan and Yuki were watching the scene, smiling.
“Aww, how sweet.”
“I guess this means you two are a couple.”
Yuko looked up and smiled. I’ve got a bad feeling about this; the look in her eyes is….
I can’t believe I have to do this… “Come on, Haruna~. You have to do it now to make it official.”
“Really?”
"You wanna make it up to me, right?”
I groaned and walked out in front of the courtyard. Everyone was staring at the two of us, mumbling to each other. Yuko took hold of my hand.
Here goes nothing… “I’m Yuko!”
“And I’m Haruna…”
“And we are…” She held up our hands high in the air, for everyone to see. “DATING!”
All the students were giggling, whispering to each other while pointing to the two of us. I looked over and saw Acchan, Yuki, and Mayu, who just gave me a thumbs up. I groaned and watched Yuko happily swinging our arms.
“So, are we official?” she asked with a smile.
I looked around at everyone, who was waiting for something else to happen. I sighed and turned to face her.
“Only after this….”
*Chu* “Kyaaaaa!”
“Feel better now?”
Yuko just smiled and nodded, hugging me around the neck. Everyone applauded like it was a live concert.
This is going to be a long year…
Third Person POV Deeper in the heart of the alien forest, along with four girls at her beck and call, a beautiful young woman sat on a throne. She was the Queen, dawning a crimson red and navy blue Victorian dress with a black corset and red rose on the left side of her chest, where the heart normally beats.
She was a truly stunning Queen, with dark purple eyes that looked evily, with almost no light. Her hair was short and brown, complementing her fair skin. She had a red rose on the right side of her head, and you could see a slight scar just under her right eyebrow, which was covered slightly by her bangs.
Umeda, the princess and most loyal to the Queen, entered and kneeled before the beautiful woman.
“My Queen… I have received new intell from the Sanshou Sisters.”
“What?” she spoke coldly, but had a hint of intrigue in her low tone.
“They have reported that two ANGELs have been found.”
Her eyes narrowed and she stood up.
“So, they still exist…”
“I’m afraid so.”
She slowly walked down from her throne and patted the orange haired girl’s head.
“Thank you, Umeda… my loyal princess.” she said before walking back to a large cherry blossom tree at the end of the forest, just behind her throne. It has not bloomed.
“What shall we do?”
The woman’s head turned slightly, so Umeda couldn’t see her eyes.
“They should rest for today. Tell them not to make a move until I say so.”
Umeda smiled and bowed one last time before leaving.
“As you wish… Sado-sama.”
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NO3B-Answer—在线播放—优酷网，视频高清在线观看+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To Be Continued
Topic: REBORN 2016 Reboot - Chapter 5 (042517) (Read 67676 times)