Tsukiro rolled his eyes as he watched the First Division members head off in the opposite direction as they did. “I can’t believe they fell for that…” he mumbled as they took off again.
They ran as fast as they could. It was about half an hour later when they finally slowed down. Tsukiro rounded a corner and revealed in front of them were tall, oak double gates painted black with an unfamiliar crest in white. The walls stood tall and wrapped around the entire complex. Only the dark rooftops were visible above the top of the gate and walls. It held an ominous aura, like walking towards a catacomb filled with decayed corpses.
Kita looked around her as the two made their way through the gates. A chill ran down Kita’s spin as they slowly walking through the mansion grounds. It was like walking through a ghost town. Parts of the cement ground were cracked and in pieces. The shingles on the rooftops were cracked and falling apart. Overgrowth obscured the view in spots, and vines climbed up the walls like skinny green arms. Everything was dark and cold. One couldn’t tell which parts of the buildings were naturally black and which were just faded and decayed. Some buildings stood tall and others stretched on. Some of the wings were connected by outside walkways. A couple of the walkways had even caved in from decay and old age. Gardens that once had been full of life and vegetation were now barren wastelands. It was no wonder those who lived close by had not dared to come near it and those everywhere else had not heard of it. Kita was sure that if they had, it would have become a legend and a scary story told to children to get them to behave. It could have been a set in a horror film.
Looking to Tsukiro, Kita reached out grabbing his hand and stopping their walk toward the main house. “You brought me to the Ashimitsu mansion? Why?”
“The Ashimitsu mansion has been abandoned for centuries. The last known record of any of my ancestors living here are so old they’re not even in the Daireisho archives. And the libraries are severely lacking in our family’s lore as it is. No one looks at those records anyway. The mansion still stands, but its history is all but lost to the world.” Tsukiro turned and grinned at her. “That and my ancestors had quite a few tricks up their sleeves, even in those ages.”
“But--” Kita released his hand and looked back toward the house. She sighed and nodded deciding not to go into it with him. “I guess your right.”
Tsukiro smiled like the Cheshire cat, noticing Kita’s reluctance. “What’s wrong? Scared?” He poked fun at her.
Kita looked to Tsukiro with a ‘Get Real’ look in her eyes. “I lived in Las Noches. You really think this place would scare me? I just… I don’t want you having to relive any bad memories because of this.”
Tsukiro shook his head and continued on to the main house. “I don’t have any memories of this place. I barely know anything about it. My dad is the one who knows everything about our clan. Besides, I’ve never even been here.”
Kita blinked a few times as he walked away from her toward the main house. “Seriously? This is your families home and no one has bothered to restore it? How sad.”
Tsukiro shrugged. “Clans fall all the time.” He placed one foot on the first step up to the front door and turned back to look at her. “And now the role of my family name is to support the Shihoin clan. Otherwise, they will be the next clan to fall.” He smiled and gestured to the doors with his head. “Let’s go in.”
With what Tsukiro said Kita felt a pang in her chest. It was not of pain nor of sadness, but of anger and rage. She narrowed her eyes and stormed toward him her fists clenched at her sides. Not looking at him, as she brushed past him, she growled. “Why would you care? Clans fall all the time.” She stepped into the house and stopped cold in her track as she looked around the sad lonely manor.
Tsukiro looked around as well, standing next to Kita. Everything was cold, damp and smelled of dust and old age. The sight of the black, shadowed interior chilled his spine. It was somewhat worse than he had imagined. The tatami mats were old and sinking into the ground and even ripped in some parts. The paper on the sliding wood doors were ripped and falling off. The wood on the dusty, cobweb infested furniture was rotting and breaking apart. The interior was huge, and you could barely see even a few meters into the front room. The rest was pitch black.
“Wow.” Tsukiro shook off the horror movie feeling and turned to Kita. “Let’s try and find something to light our way. I’m sure there has to be some old lamps or something. Then we can look around. Maybe there’s a basement or some underground storage area.”
Kita nodded and sighed as she followed Tsukiro further into the abandoned mansion’s main house. The doors behind them swung shut, casting the room back into darkness.
