Chapter 1: Anticipated Awakening
Darkness. This is the first thing that greeted her awakening as she slid out of her unravelling cocoon. Weakly, she crawled out of the Miyagusuku tombs, and squinted at the sudden brightness of the mid-day sun. She gingerly got to her feet, swaying slightly, her long dark tresses flowing down to cover her naked body. She absently gazed at the sparkling blue Okinawan sea before her, a single name escaping her full pink lips.
“Hagi...”
She took a wobbling step and stumbled, falling on the hard stone floor. As she slowly got up, something caught her attention. It was a dark blue ribbon tied in a bow around a fresh pink rose... Hagi’s hair ribbon!
She picked it up uncertainly, her eyes welling with tears as she unsteadily rose to her feet, her heart almost bursting with new hope.
Could it be? But...She let the tears trickle down her pretty face. Impossible...
A strong sea breeze lifted her hair, leaving her quite bare. As she shivered with cold, she felt a gust of wind behind her. She suddenly found herself covered with leathery, bat-like wings, and held in a warm and secure embrace. Her eyes widened as her name was spoken by a voice so smooth, so silky, and so...familiar.
“Saya...”
Saya quickly turned around, and in doing so, made the one hugging her loose his balance. They both fell to the ground, with Saya landing atop the stranger. Rich burgundy eyes locked on intense silvery-blue ones.
“Hagi...?”
Both got up and tried to regain their composure, with Hagi assisting Saya. When they were in a comfortable position, Saya laid her head against Hagi’s face, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Saya...” Hagi murmured, gently wiping her tears with the forefinger of his normal left hand. He took off his coat, and laid it upon Saya’s bare shoulders.
“Oh, Hagi...” Saya sobbed, further burrowing her face into Hagi’s chest. “I thought...I thought you died that night, thirty years ago. I thought...I thought you were crushed in those falling debris with Amshel...Chevaliers after all, can be killed by being squashed completely, and seeing that building collapse on you...and your last words to me, ‘”to live”...”
Saya tightly clenched the front of Hagi’s suit, so tightly that the material is drawn tight across his broad chest. Then, she unexpectedly let go, her arms falling down to her sides in a defeated manner. Hagi reached for her, concern clouding his beautiful eyes. When he was about to clutch her shoulders, Saya brusquely slapped his hands away. Hagi just looked at her, his usual stoic countenance showing just a hint of hurt and confusion.
“Saya...?”
“HOW DARE YOU!” Saya screamed, viciously pounding her fists into Hagi’s chest. “How dare you put me in that kind of misery! You were alive, and yet...yet you didn’t return to me! How could you? How could you possibly let me suffer the terrible feeling of losing you...right after losing my sister? ANSWER ME!”
All this time, Hagi had sat still, neither flinching nor trying to avoid her blows. But at Saya’s last spoken words, both of Hagi’s hands gently curled around her wrists, effectively stopping her assault. His stunning misty eyes bore down on hers, conveying so much tenderness that they calmed her down.
“Saya...” He crooned soothingly, hugging her close. Saya closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his strong chest, and the lull of his soft voice. If only they could be like this forever...she’ll throw away the past, leaving it to fade into oblivion.
Saya caught sight of the rose that she accidentally dropped when she heard Hagi’s voice earlier. She picked it up and twirled it on her fingers absent-mindedly, smiling when she noticed that its stem is devoid of thorns.
“You have always done this, when we were still living in the Zoo.” Saya smiled, reminiscing. “I was so demanding of you, always asking you to do things that would prove to be difficult even for the most talented servant...and you were just a young boy. Do you remember the roses that I asked you to pick, Hagi?”
Hagi nodded silently.
“I asked you to pick me some red roses, and you brought me a beautiful bunch. But spoiled as I once was, I declared them of an ugly shade, and ask you for another.”
Saya grew solemn as she remembered that scene in her room, so many years ago.
The ten-your old Hagi, his dark, wavy hair braided and pulled back from his youthful face that promises striking features in the near future, listened quietly and patiently as Saya rant on and on about how unsuitable he is to be her servant, before finally ordering him to do his assigned task all over again. This tirade he bore with quiet dignity, his face a mask of calm and his hands all the while folded behind his back. It was when he was about to repeat his errand, turning around to head for the door, that Saya caught sight of them.
His pair of bloody, injured hands.
The sight made her look at the roses she had been clutching quite firmly for some time.
No wonder she didn’t feel any pain.
“You removed them,” Saya murmured, her eyes on the rose. “The thorns; you remove them so I can admire the roses’ beauty without hurting myself in the process. I still remember what you’ve said to me that day, when I asked you why you did it.”
She remembered, too, the earnestness of his face when he spoke those words.
“I don’t want her ladyship to hurt herself because of something she so dearly loves.”
Saya looked up from the rose and gazed tenderly at Hagi.
“You’ve always been like this, Hagi, protecting me from anything that might hurt me, even from my own self.”
“Saya...”
Saya smiled, and continued twirling the rose. All of a sudden, a light dizziness struck her, causing her to abruptly drop the flower. Hagi was beside her in an instant; his eyes twin orbs of anxiety.
“Don’t worry; I just felt slightly dizzy, that’s all.” Saya nonchalantly answered his worried look, bending down to pick up the rose that she’d dropped.
Without a word, Hagi brushed away his long , wavy hair from his neck and leaned closer to Saya. Understanding the gesture, Saya shook her head and turned away.
“I know what you want me to do Hagi, but I won’t do it. I...I don’t want to drink blood anymore. It just reminds me of my tragic past...and my horrible identity.”
Hagi straightened up and just looked at her silently for some time. Then, without a word, he hastily unwrapped his bandaged Chiropteran right hand and sliced it with his silver dagger. Crimson blood oozed from the wound and fell in drops on Saya’s lap. The sticky feel and the sharp scent of the red substance made Saya’s throat clench with thirst, but she stubbornly controlled herself
Wordlessly, Hagi took some of his blood in his mouth, and tilting Saya’s chin towards, him, forces it all in her lips in a bruising kiss. Saya’s eyes glowed an eerie red as she tasted the familiar metallic essence on her tongue. She felt her dizziness fade, and her strength return. As Hagi began to pull back from the kiss, Saya wrapped her arms around his neck and forcefully brought him down again, her lips hungrily devouring his. Hagi’s gorgeous gray-blue eyes widened a fraction for a moment in shock, and then he was tightly embracing Saya, returning her kisses with as much vigor as they were given.
Breathless, Saya withdrew and snuggled closer to Hagi.
“Oi, what are you two doing?” A middle-aged man with silver-flecked red hair called out to them. Beside him were pretty young girls who looked identical except for their one distinguishing feature: their eyes. One has wine-coloured irises, similar to those of Saya’s, while those of the other are of a vibrant azure, the colour of the deep ocean. Both have the innocent face of Riku, but have short black hair. They were about Saya’s age. The one with the red eyes seemed to have taken an instant interest in Hagi, her ruby gaze never leaving him the moment she saw him. But Hagi didn’t seem to notice this as he disengaged himself from Saya and helped her to her feet.
“Kai, is she our Aunt Saya?” The claret-eyed twin asked the man.
“Yes Rika,” The man answered, laying a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “She is your mother’s twin, and also a foster sister to me and your father.”
“Kai...?” Saya asked uncertainly, taking a hesitant step towards them.
“Yes, it is I, Saya, only thirty years older” Kai replied, smiling. “I’m 50 right now.”
The other girl, the one with blue eyes, tentatively tugged Kai’s coat sleeve.
“Kai, Aunt Saya looks cold. Why don’t you also give her your coat?”
Kai blinked at this remark, and finally noticed that Saya is naked with only Hagi’s coat to cover her.
“Oh, forgive me! It’s just that I didn’t notice...” Kai flustered, clearly embarrassed. He then hastily approached Saya removing his coat in the process.
“Here, wear this, It’ll keep you warm.” Kai said as he placed his coat above Hagi’s. Saya smiled, clutching the coats tighter around her.
“Thank you Kai...”
Her eyes slowly travelled to the twins.
“Are they Riku...and Diva’s children?”
Kai smiled, and beckoned the twins to stand beside him.
“Yes, this girl here with the same eye-colour as you is Rika, while her cobalt-eyed twin is Risa.”
Both girls bowed in greeting, a friendly smile on their lips. Saya smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.
“So, why don’t we go home now?” Kai suggested, excitement evident in his voice. “Saya obviously needs more clothes, and she’ll also be thrilled to see Omoro again.”
Saya smiled at the mention of Omoro, their adoptive father’s pub. Her mind was filled with all the pleasant memories of the two years she spent as the daughter of George Miyagusuku, sister to Kai and Riku. It was a simple life, beautiful in its normalcy. One couldn’t have imagined that the year that followed would be so bloody and hideous, fraught with deaths and disaster. How she would love to go there, to the only place that gave her peace in her more than one hundred years of existence. She can’t wait to go home!
“Let’s go home, Kai.” Saya said with steely resolve. She tried taking a step and would have stumbled if not for Hagi who came to her aid.
“Would you like me to give you a piggyback ride, Saya?” Kai asked in worry.
“Thank you, but I can manage.” Saya replied stubbornly. “It’s just that I have slept for thirty years, and my body is still trying to recall its functions.”
As Saya tried once again to walk, she suddenly found herself swept off her feet and carried bridal style by Hagi.
“Hagi, what do you think are you doing?! Put me down!” Saya cried indignantly.
Ignoring Saya’s furious cries, Hagi spread his Chiropteran wings, and took off into the clear blue sky.
They were gone in seconds.
“So, what are we going to do now?” Rika asked Kai half-heartedly, her longing gaze lingering on the spot where Hagi and Saya disappeared. Risa noticed this, and looked at her twin with concern.
“We go home, of course.” Kai cheerfully replied, oblivious to the heavy atmosphere that had blanketed the twins.
“It will be rude for us to let them wait outside, considering that we have locked the door before we left, and brought the key with us.”