Himitsu 06 - T̶r̶u̶t̶h̶?

As Jun returns to his old and familiar home, memories flood his mind, taking him back to the past. The royal interior of the living room remains unchanged, reminding him of the good old days. However, his thoughts are soon interrupted by a sense of worry for Atsuko. Jun is half-human and half-Daten-shi. His father, Caelum, is a full human while his mother, whose whereabouts are unknown, is a full Daten-shi. "This place hasn't changed...." Jun whispers, sitting on the white couch with a worried expression. Saving Atsuko is the only thing on his mind. "So, how do we save Atsuko, father?" Jun asks, wanting to hurry and come to Atsuko's rescue. Caelum sits across from his son, having lemon tea ready on the table, he explains, "It's going to be difficult this time around. Kenzo is much more powerful now. Having the whole town here of Okinawa in Caspien works to his advantage." Jun nods, understanding the challenges ahead. However, the truth slowly dawns on Jun's face as he recalls what happened to Atsuko on that fateful day. Although he had pretended to know nothing in front of Atsuko, he couldn't do the same in front of his father. They both knew what had happened. It wasn't two figures in white cloaks that had caused chaos in the Alouette's residence. Someone else had used Atsuko as a puppet, carrying out their plan of bloodshed, which they saw as beautiful artwork for a canvas. Jun wonders if they can truly save Atsuko again.

Memory Flash: T̶r̶u̶t̶h̶?

As Atsuko arrived at the Alouette's residence after a hospital checkup, she seemed strangely silent and went straight to her room without uttering a word. Saki noticed her behavior and felt concerned, but she didn't want to pry into Atsuko's issues. So she went to the kitchen to make some lunch and bake a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies, hoping that this would cheer Atsuko up. Meanwhile, Seiko went upstairs to check up on her. She wanted to hear from Atsuko about what was bothering her and to offer her some comfort. However, when Seiko entered Atsuko's room without knocking, she noticed that something was wrong. Atsuko was lying in bed, under the covers, motionless and unresponsive. "Atsuko! Wake up We are going to have chocolate chip cookies!" Seiko exclaims happily. Atsuko doesn't move, being stone still. Seiko pulls off the covers to only reveal her once beloved friend with her eyes rolled back, showing only white. Atsuko pulls out a strange-looking knife from her lap, using it to stab Seiko in the stomach. Seiko lets out a scream, falling over and to the ground. Saki hears the commotion and runs upstairs. As she enters Atsuko's room, Seiko is already killed, not by Atsuko but by a dark shadow.

The dark shadow has the strange knife in hand and without mercy, it stabs Saki more than one time, spilling her blood on most of the walls and hard floors. Atsuko lies next to Seiko, having blurry vision and is tired. Entering the room is a mysterious male with dirty blond hair and light blue eyes, wearing red spectacles. He's dressed in an all-white lab coat, holding a clipboard and pen in hand as he begins writing. A small smirk appears on his lips, staring down at the dead Saki, unconscious Atsuko, and Seiko who is slowly bleeding out. He even spots the shadow who drops the strange-looking knife onto the ground and disappears into thin air. The mysterious scientist picks up the strange knife, before pocketing it and leaving from the room.  ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    ‎‎‎ ‎‎‎     ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    ‎‎‎ ‎‎‎     ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    ‎‎‎ ‎‎‎     ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    ‎‎‎ ‎‎‎     ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    ‎‎‎ ‎‎‎     ‎ ‎ ‎‎‎‎    

****

As night falls, Caelum and Jun arrive at the crime scene, a home where a tragedy has taken place. They enter the darkened house, and upon reaching the room where the crime was committed, Caelum uses a flashlight to see properly. What he sees shocks him, and Jun, who is still just a child, is scared and stays close to his father. Suddenly, Jun hears a voice, "She's mine!" He pretends not to have heard anything, almost tripping over Saki's corpse. "Stay back! Go downstairs and call for backup!" Caelum demands, causing Jun to quickly leave the room. As Jun descends the stairs, he notices a shadowy figure that opens the front door and leaves. Jun knows exactly who this person is and follows them, confronting them outside the house, “Hey!!!” He yells in deep anger, standing at the doorway of the home.

The shadowy figure that was going to leave, turns around, revealing its identity. It's a young Kenzo, who laughs in amusement, not replying to Jun before his whole body disappears. Back inside the house, Caelum manages to turn the power back on, and they discover two survivors: Atsuko, who is in a strange daze, and Seiko, who is still alive despite having lost a lot of blood. At this point, Caelum decides to save Seiko but not Atsuko, for reasons that are unknown and unorthodox. Nothing seems to make sense. As the events of that night replay in his mind, Jun begins to wonder if what he remembers is true. Was it Kenzo who caused this tragedy, or is there more to the story than he realizes?  

****

Caelum is already seated at the dinner table, waiting patiently for three more individuals to join him. In the bathroom, Jun stands before the mirror, observing his reflection. He notices that his appearance has changed slightly; his cool mohawk and earrings have been replaced by a small ponytail as his hair has grown a few inches longer. However, the most noticeable change is Jun's eyes. His left eye is a deep, vibrant purple, while his right is a piercing gray. As Jun lingers in the bathroom, he can hear faint giggles and the sound of two people running from outside. "Hurry, dinner is going to be more delicious than last time!" exclaims a young girl with short, orange hair and striking purple eyes. She's running as fast as she can, eager to get to the dinner table. Following closely behind is a young woman, giggling with delight. She has long, blue hair and bi-colored eyes- one a special, starry green, while the other is a simple ebony. Despite his hesitation to leave the bathroom, Jun eventually exits and walks downstairs towards the dining hall. As he opens the main doors, he is taken aback by the sight before him. Seated at the dinner table with his father is his youngest and only sister, Leonarda, as well as none other than Seiko Alouette. It seems he had forgotten about them both until now.

"Big brother! It's been a while! Hey!" Leonarda greets, waving excitedly. Seiko simply smiles at Jun, hiding a sadness in her heart. She wonders how Atsuko has been and misses her dearly.

¿gnihtyna leef sselluos enoemos nac woh tuB