Work Text:
"If… If you could just forget what happened… But, what could I do to… Oh. Wait… By altering a subject's cognition… By changing their heart - any related trauma is eliminated."
What? Who was talking…? What were they talking about? Why did their voice sound so familiar…?
"By changing his cognition… Ren's pain and trauma… All of it! It can be undone!"
Cognition…? How… How did they know his name…? Pain and… trauma?
"Yes… I'll do it. I don't care who you may be… Lend me your strength! Please… Help me save Ren's life!"
Save… my life…? Who were they talking to…?
"W-Wait…" Ren didn't know what was happening, but he didn't like it. Why couldn't he see this man's face?!
"In order to save you… You must forget… You must forget everything…" Another voice spoke directly into the child's subconscious.
"N-No… I… I-I don't… I don't wanna forget…!" He cried as he felt as if everything precious to him was being ripped out of his grasp.
His mind felt fuzzy. He couldn't think straight at all. He saw a figure in the distance… Who…? Why… Why did he feel so attached to them…?
The figure began walking away.
Ren's small hand weakly reached out to them.
"N-No… Don't go…! I don't… I don't wanna forget! Don't leave…! Please…!"
Every memory. Everyone he knew and loved. Every shared meal. Every 'Good morning, kiddo'. Every 'I love you'.
Everything was ripped away.
"Dad...dy…"
Ren's eyes fluttered open.
The mid winter sun shone through the attic's window. Tears were streaming down his cold face.
That dream again… Why…? Why did it hurt so much…?
The raven haired teen sat up, rubbing his eyes before grabbing his glasses and slipping them onto his face. Wait… That dream… Ren cleared his throat as he remembered a possibility from those dreams.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh…" He tested.
Yep. He could speak today. That was good.
He couldn't help but be a little confused. Why was it that sometimes those dreams would cause him to lose his voice, and then other times he could speak just fine? Brains were weird…
He picked up his phone, only to discover a text from Goro.
[Goro: Hey, we're going into that palace today. You better not have forgotten.]
Right… That weird palace that was changing reality… Just who the hell was the ruler?
[Ren: Yeah, of course. When should we meet up? And does Kasumi know yet?]
[Goro: Let's meet up at eleven. That should be enough time for you to stop drooling and actually wake the fuck up, shouldn't it?]
[Goro: And yes, I've already told Yoshizawa-san.]
[Ren: Cool, cool. Try not to get distracted before then… Wouldn't want you being left behind would we? ;)]
[Goro: Eat shit]
[Ren: No u]
A mischievous grin appeared on Ren's face after sending those texts. It was just too much fun pissing off Goro. And really easy too. Placing his phone down, Ren stood up and began his preparations for the day.
This palace was one of the strangest Ren had ever seen. He still had no idea who's palace it could be, sterile white walls with shadows in lab coats… It looked like a hospital... a really bizarre hospital…
"What the hell even is this place?" Huffed Goro as he opened another door. This room seemed like a storage room.
"Hey, there's a TV over here… Do you think it could be useful?" Kasumi asked, pointing out her discovery. Ren and Goro glanced over before glancing at each other.
"It could give us a clue about the ruler…?" Ren muttered curiously. Goro nodded, walking over and analysing the desk where the TV sat.
"There's a video tape inside it already." Kasumi remarked, pointing at the tape and instinctively pressing play.
The old CRT flickered on to display a man sat at a desk, scribbling down notes with a determined scowl.
The three thieves squinted as they tried to make out the face, but it was no good. The tape seemed broken, glitches in the footage obscuring his face.
As he flicked through the numerous books on his desk, a small boy wandered into the room, his face also obscured the same way by the faulty footage.
Goro clicked his tongue in irritation. Of fucking course… It can never be that easy, can it?
"Daddy?" The young boy called out, gently tugging on the man's jeans and making him flinch.
"Oh! -n! Sorry! Did you need something?" The man asked, placing down his pen and giving the child his complete attention.
"It's dinner time…" The boy mumbled. The man hurriedly glanced up at the clock.
"O-Oh! Oh, I'm so sorry, kiddo! I'll make something right now!" He apologised in a panic. The child calmly shook their head.
"I'm fine, I'm worried about you, daddy… I had lunch and snacks but you haven't eaten since breakfast…" The boy explained quietly, clinging onto his father's shirt.
The man fell silent in surprise before chuckling softly and ruffling the child's hair. Picking him up and walking over to the room's door, he spoke up.
"I'm sorry, I've been so busy… You were probably lonely, huh? Tell you what, why don't we go out to get some dinner? That sound good?" He suggested with a sweet smile.
The child enthusiastically nodded his head as he hugged his father tight.
The tape cut off there. Goro huffed audibly in annoyance.
"That taught us nothing…" He growled as he walked away from the TV dismissively.
"Do you think the ruler could be the father in that video?" Suggested Kasumi.
"It's a possibility, I guess…"
"What do you think, Ren-senpai?"
Ren wasn't paying attention.
The voices sounded familiar… But… Where…? The raven haired thief squeezed his eyes shut as his head hurt a little.
"Ren?"
"Huh?"
He blinked his eyes open to see his two teammates staring at him in confusion.
"O-Oh, yeah, seems possible."
"... Are you okay, Senpai?" Kasumi asked with a worried frown.
"Yeah… Yeah, I'm fine… My head just hurt a little… That's all…" Ren said, awkwardly dismissing her question.
"You can keep going, right?" Goro enquired with a serious glare.
"Yeah, I'm okay."
"Good, because I am not stopping here today. I am figuring out what the fuck's going on, even if it kills me."
"Oh, of course, I wouldn't want to slow you down, your princeliness!" Ren replied in a mocking tone, bowing down dramatically.
Kasumi giggled awkwardly as an irritated scowl enveloped Goro’s face.
"Your code name may be Joker, but you really aren't funny…" The chestnut haired boy muttered. Ren just grinned back.
"I-I'll go check and see if the coast is clear!" Kasumi awkwardly excused herself, knowing exactly what these boys were like once they got started.
Goro watched her walk to the other side of the room before turning his attention back to Ren.
"Hey…" He spoke up in a hushed tone.
"What?" Ren whispered back, wondering why Goro was suddenly being so secretive.
"You had another one of your weird dreams, didn't you?"
Oh. That was why.
Ren looked off to the side.
"Yeah…" He admitted quietly.
"I thought so. You've looked like something was bothering you since we met up… Which one was it?"
"The one where the guy walks away and I can't reach him…"
"Hmm…"
"It's just… I know that these dreams have something to do with my missing memories, it's just… It's so fucking infuriating… I'm so close to seeing something that'll help me remember… And then everything goes hazy and I wake up…"
"I understand… But… Try not to get distracted, okay? We still have no idea what could be in this palace." Goro warned him sternly, yet his expression was soft.
"Right, shit, sorry… I shouldn't be thinking about that stuff right now…"
"Don't apologise. Just stay focused."
"Yeah… Right. Thanks."
"The shadows have gone around the corner! The coast is clear!" Kasumi declared from her position at the door.
"Alright, thanks.” he turned to Kasumi, before looking back at Ren, “Shall we get going?"
"Yeah."
"Sure thing! Let's move, Senpai!"
As the trio continued their investigation, they discovered more video tapes. However, none of them gave them any information on the palace’s ruler… They simply depicted a man taking care of his son and falling in love with a woman…
The woman meeting the child…
The woman, the thieves just about heard the name 'Rumi', taking care of the child while he was sick…
The man proposing to Rumi…
Rumi taking the child with her to her parents' house when the man had to rush off to work…
In every single video, the man and the child's faces remained obscured… Not to mention, every time their names were mentioned, the audio would distort, Goro gradually getting more and more annoyed with the lack of information.
Although, the thing that worried Ren was… Every time they watched one of the tapes, a sharp pain pulsed through his head… And with each new tape, the pain grew more immense. The latest one they witnessed was so painful he nearly passed out.
And… When Rumi said she would take the child with her to her parents' house… It made him feel nauseous… Like; there was something bad about to happen.
Despite quickly recovering, Goro and Kasumi kept a close eye on Ren while they explored after his fainting close call. He appreciated their help but… He felt guilty for worrying them.
*Kkkksssskkkk*
The thieves quickly hid behind the nearest objects as the speaker system sparked suddenly to life, Goro glaring suspiciously at the system as he awaited the audio.
"Sir! This is a crime scene! We have to ask you to stay back!"
"Let me through, my family's in there!"
"Crime scene?" Goro repeated. Finally, some info that could prove useful!
"-e̶̒̌̄̊̚n! Rumi! Where are you?!"
"R-Rumi…"
"Sir, I understand how you feel but you mustn't touch her… This is a crime scene after all… Please understand…"
"What happened…?" Kasumi uttered under her breath. Whatever it was, she knew it wasn't good. The heartbroken tone of the man's voice made her feel as if she was about to burst into tears.
"-e̶͊͛̆͑͗̆́͠n̶̄͂̋̒̋̆̿͝… Where's -e̶͊͛̆͑͗̆́͠n̶̄͂̋̒̋̆̿͝…? Where's my son?!"
Intense pain pulsed through Ren's head as the audio entered his ears.
"Ggh!?" He grunted suddenly, grasping painfully onto the sides of his head as the pain continued coursing through his brain.
"Ren?!"
"Senpai?!"
His teammates gasped in concerns he collapsed onto the ground, groaning in pain.
As they looked down at him with worried expressions, Ren could hear Arsene's voice… And someone else's voice… Who…?
"You must remember!"
"You mustn't remember!"
As the voices screamed into Ren's head, the pain became too much to handle and Ren succumbed to unconsciousness.
"Ugh…" Ren moaned quietly as he came to, his head still aching slightly.
He could just about make out the chestnut head of hair belonging to Goro Akechi leaning back to look at him.
"Ren? Can you hear me?"
A redhead joined him.
"Senpai?! Are you alright?!"
Ren grunted as he carefully sat himself up. He waited for his vision to clear up and then analysed his surroundings.
He was in a safe room. His coat had been draped over him like a blanket while Kasumi's coat had been folded up underneath his head.
"I-I'm fine…" He shakily replied.
"You're clearly not." Goro scoffed in response, crossing his arms.
"Yeah, you really don't look too good, Senpai… What happened back there?" Kasumi asked worriedly.
"I… I don't know… My head just… It hurt so much…" He muttered, lifting a hand to his head.
"Maybe we should head back for today…" The redhead suggested, shooting an anxious glance over to Goro.
"No." Ren demanded. "I need to know what the hell's going on. I'm not leaving until I learn the truth."
This palace had some kind of connection to him. He knew it.
Goro scowled, seeming a little conflicted.
"What's with that look?" Ren huffed as he pulled his coat back on and handed Kasumi's coat back to her.
"... Nothing. Just thinking. If you think you can keep going, fine. But, if your head hurts again. We. Are. Leaving. Understood?" Goro eventually spoke up.
There was something about the look in his eyes. He clearly had an hypothesis on something, but didn't have any evidence to back it up.
"Yes, mother…"
Goro whacked Ren's shoulder with an annoyed pout.
"Ren-senpai! Take this seriously! If you get yourself hurt, I won't forgive you! And you, Akechi-senpai! You should know better than to hit him after he passed out!" Kasumi snapped, glaring at the two boys.
Sharing an awkward glance, the duo bowed their heads apologetically.
"Sorry, Yoshizawa-san…"
"Oh, would you look at that… Another TV… I can't wait to watch another worthless family video…" Goro spat as they entered another storage room.
Kasumi smacked the back of his head as she walked past.
"Ow!"
"Stop complaining…" She muttered as she pressed the play button.
Ren frowned nervously, he honestly couldn't decide if he wanted the video to trigger something in his head or not…
It took a minute for the image to clear, but once it did, it displayed two men sat at a bar. Both of them looked incredibly familiar to Ren… But he couldn't quite put his finger on it…
The raven haired man slammed his glass onto the table.
"The hell, -ut̵̢̛̳͔͇̳͆̽̈́͒̌͐̑͜͝ơ̵?! You can't just be completely fine with this?!" He demanded. The chestnut haired man's name obscured once again.
Goro clicked his tongue impatiently. They were getting so close to hearing his name…
"Of course, I'm not okay with this… But what other choice do I have…?" The man muttered in a depressed tone, clearly a little drunk from the slur of his voice.
"So, you're just giving up?! Look, he's only been in the hospital for a week… They can still find a way to heal him… Things like this take time… Hell, talking to him could help him remember…!" The leather jacket wearing man tried to encourage his friend.
"No… It's for the best I stay away…"
"For fuck's sake… R̸̀̅͒͑̌̐̑͗͝e̵͊̐̅̍̔͑̆̔͆͠͝n̸̂̆͋̂̅̐̈́͝͠'s your son! Are you really fine with him never seeing you again?! You're his father! It's your damn job to help him!" The raven haired man was starting to grow infuriated with his friend's spinelessness.
"I am helping him! You weren't there! You didn't see the shit that he went through! You think I want him to remember that?! If he stays with me, those memories are gonna come flooding back and hurt him! I'm not going to let him suffer like that! There's no way in hell you'd understand!" The chestnut haired man snapped back in a drunken rage, a sharp crack in his voice telling the thieves he was crying.
He downed the remainder of his drink before slamming his empty glass down onto the table and storming out. The raven haired man let out a shaky sigh as he quietly broke down into tears, crying into his hands.
"Dammit, T̶̄͛͊̒̌̔͒̏a̷̾̐̊̊͗̏̊k̴͐̍u̴̿̌͋̐̑̔́͊̚to̴̚… Why are you so…?"
The tape faded into static.
"Son of a bitch… I almost got their names… Why does it have to glitch?!" Ren muttered, kicking his foot in irritation as his head throbbed slightly.
"I, at least, know that the man's name ends with 'to'..." Goro huffed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"It… seems that something really bad happened to the kid… From the sounds of it, the father had to leave him…" Kasumi theorized with a sorrowful expression. She couldn't help but feel bad for the man in the videos.
"How's your head?" Goro asked, glancing over at Ren.
"It's fine… Nothing much really happened after that video…" Ren muttered, more occupied with figuring out the names of the figures..
"If you're sure…" Murmured Kasumi.
"I am. Let's get moving."
"What's with you? You've never acted this serious before…" Goro remarked, frowning slightly.
"Something just… doesn't feel right about this place… I need to know what's going on…"
Goro gazed at Ren. He'd been acting weird all day. It was obvious that something was bothering him… But it was also obvious that Ren wasn’t so sure either..
A stressed sigh left his mouth. It was hard work being a senpai… Especially one to a cocky lil thief and an overly caring gymnast.
"... Alright… Let's get moving."
Ren's stomach fluttered uncomfortably as they continued through the palace. Something really didn't feel right… The further they went, the more clouded his mind felt.
He tried to keep his concerns hidden, but Goro clearly noticed that something was up. Ren was just grateful that he wasn't questioning him on it.
"These doors are pretty big… It makes me feel like we're going to encounter a final boss or something…" Kasumi mumbled, anxiously sweating as she stared up at the giant doorway.
"Well, it's about damn time he showed his face." Goro scoffed in response, marching over to the door, ready to strike down whoever the culprit was.
Ren remained silent.
He was… scared.
Would he be able to ask them about his memories? Would they even actually know him? What if those headaches were just some weird coincidence?
"Ren?"
Goro's voice made Ren flinch. All of those questions flew away as Kasumi gently grabbed onto his wrist.
"Are you ready, Senpai?"
Ren took a deep breath, readying himself to face the person who could potentially tell him the truth about his past. He gripped his knife in preparation of a possible battle.
"Yeah. Let's head in."
Goro smirked as he grabbed onto the handle and swung the door open.
The room was gigantic and empty.
The walls were bright white and sterile.
Countless lights shone down into the middle of the room.
A giant TV screen hung down from the ceiling.
A stairway lead up to another doorway.
Not a soul in sight.
The trio cautiously entered, scanning the area with each step, ready for a potential ambush. Goro rolled his eyes as he huffed irritably.
"When the hell is this cowardly bastard gonna show up?!" He hissed.
"What is this room even supposed to be?" Asked Kasumi, taking in every little detail of her surroundings.
She had a point… Ren had never seen a room like this in a hospital… Granted this was the distorted world of someone's heart… But, still… It had to be based on something from the real world.
"There's gotta be something in here… A room this big with not even a single clue? I'm not buying it…" Ren muttered, loosening his grip on his knife.
"I'm not, either… Let's search everything." Goro declared.
"Sounds good. I'll check the right, Akechi-senpai will check the left and Ren-senpai will check the centre." Kasumi ordered.
Goro widened his eyes, eyebrows raised. She'd only been a thief for about two days and yet she was already taking charge… Impressive.
"Alright… Sounds like a plan." He answered with an amused chuckle as he wandered over to his assigned area. Ren sighed as he pondered where to begin.
'The centre of the room's the obvious choice, right…?' He thought to himself as he walked over.
The raven haired thief crouched down and examined the floor thoroughly. Maybe there could be a trap door? Or a stash of evidence hidden under one of the tiles? Just… something.
Ren wanted to find something.
Ren needed to find something.
Ren needed to know what was going on.
*Kkkksssskkkk*
Ren flinched as the TV screen before him suddenly turned on, static flickering across the screen. He stood up, just in case any shadows were drawn to the room by the sound.
"What now?!" Growled Goro as the sound grabbed his attention.
"Oh no…" Kasumi whispered, anxious to learn about what happened to the man from the tapes.
Ren's heart pounded against his chest as the static cleared to display the obscured man and child sat in a hospital room; the child in the bed and the man sat in a nearby chair. The footage was much less corrupt than the other tapes, the thieves could almost make out the faces.
The man spoke to the child, starting conversation after conversation. But the child didn't respond. They didn't even react in the slightest.
Kasumi clenched her fist against her chest as a sorrowful frown appeared on her face. She could hear the worry and love in the father's voice as he tried to reach his son's ear.
Goro scowled. There was something about the child that unnerved him. They sat completely still, their head hanging down almost lifelessly… They looked like a doll…
After the child groaned quietly, the man stood up and closed the windows.
"That's better, now it's nice and quiet… Okay, R̸͝e̵͊̐̅n̸͝?"
"...Qui...et…?"
"Y-Yeah! Nice and quiet!"
"Q-Quiet…"
"R-R̸͝e̵͊̐̅n̸͝?"
Ren's stomach churned at that word. He couldn't figure out why… His body felt as if it was on fire. A dull pain continuously throbbed through his head.
"Q-Quiet…! Mama! Don't go! Give… Give mama back!"
The child began frantically flailing around, terror dripping from every word that left his mouth.
Kasumi unconsciously lifted her hands to her face as the child clawed at his own.
"'Give Mama back"...? Then… This Rumi woman must have passed away…" Goro surmised with a woeful frown. How unfortunate… Was it possible that the child saw it happen…?
Doctors rushed into the room as the father tried his hardest to prevent the child from hurting himself further.
Static flashed across the screen as the video skipped forward. The father was once again sitting next to bed as the child was fast asleep.
"... I believe it may have been a post traumatic episode. Memories of the incident must have resurfaced due to some sort of stimuli, like certain imagery or phrasing."
"Phrasing…"
"Wh-What about his face…?"
"Yes… From our examinations, we believe he may be suffering from visual hallucinations… He was found with his mother's blood on his face, correct?"
Kasumi gasped at that revelation.
"The poor thing…" She murmured, her eyes growing wet as she was overwhelmed with sorrow and pity for the child.
"... Yes. That's correct…"
"It could be that he was hallucinating blood on his face again and was trying to wash it off."
The tape skipped forward once again. The doctor was no longer in the room and the father was gently stroking his son's hand with his thumb.
"If only… If only I could free you from that horrible day… But… How could I do that?"
Ren's eyes widened.
Those words…
No… No way…
The colour drained from his face.
The throbbing in his head grew more intense.
The man leaned forward and clutched his head, as if he were in pain.
"... -eek… me…"
"Nngh! Dammit… Not again…"
That voice that spoke to him… It was reminiscent of a persona… A nervous sweat broke out on Goro's forehead. Could they be dealing with someone with both a palace and a persona…? Was that possible…?
"If… If you could just forget what happened… But, what could I do to… Oh. Wait… By altering a subject's cognition… By changing their heart - any related trauma is eliminated."
The corruption of the footage began to fade. The man's face was slowly being unveiled.
"You must seek me!"
"By changing his cognition… R̸͝e̵͊̐̅n̸͝'s pain and trauma… All of it! It can be undone!"
His face was now completely visible.
Ren and Kasumi stared at him in disbelief.
"M-Maruki-sensei?!" Gasped Kasumi. What?! What was going on?! Maruki-sensei had a son?!
"Seek me… I am that who manifests thought itself. I shall echo your blasphemous fury with reality so that we may together change the world… Now, call me forth!"
A determined glare appeared on Takuto's face.
The distortions over the child's face faded away.
"Yes… I'll do it. I don't care who you may be… Lend me your strength! Please… Help me save Ren's life!"
Something shattered.
Ren's eyes were wide and dry.
He collapsed onto his knees.
He couldn't hear anything.
His mask disappeared.
"R-Ren…?!" Goro called out to him, trying to make sense of the bombshell that had just been dropped on them.
"S-Senpai is…? T-Then Maruki-sensei is his…?" Kasumi whispered, her head swarming as she glanced at the dazed boy in the centre of the room.
"U-Um… Who are you?" Asked the child on the TV. The screen suddenly shut off.
"W-What… are you doing here?" A familiar voice asked.
Goro and Kasumi turned in the direction of the voice. They discovered Maruki standing behind them, his hair slicked neatly back, dressed in a suit of white, a stunned expression on his face.
Goro crouched down into a battle stance, ready to strike.
Kasumi glanced between her teammates and her counselor.
Ren looked up at him with glazed over eyes.
A sorrowful expression enveloped Takuto's face.
"So… You saw it…" He muttered, pushing up his glasses and averting his gaze.
"D-D-Dad…?" Ren weakly whimpered. His head was swimming. He couldn't think clearly.
A pained grimace consumed Takuto's face.
"Don't call me that…" He quietly pleaded. "I don't deserve it…"
Just what the hell was going on?
Nothing made sense to Ren.
He winced in pain, hearing Arsene and the mysterious voice again.
"You must remember!"
"Avert your eyes!"
"No! Reclaim your missing past!"
"Look away! The past no longer matters!"
"Ggh…!" Ren took a sharp intake of air through gritted teeth.
"Senpai?!" Kasumi gasped as Ren clutched onto his head, a cold sweat dripping down his chin.
She began to run over to him but was quickly stopped in her tracks by a shadow leaping out in front of her.
"Please stay away from the patient! He requires our lord's healing!" They politely requested.
Despite their polite words, Kasumi could feel the bloodlust emanating off of them. Goro had the exact same problem.
"So. Let me see if I've got this straight… Your girlfriend died in a terrible incident which left Ren scarred… And instead of sticking with him and helping him heal… You erased his memories and ran away? Hmph! What a pathetic man you are!" Goro scoffed in contempt, hoping that riling up the ruler would create an opening for him to attack.
Takuto's brow furrowed into a troubled frown at those words.
"If I stayed with him, he only would've remembered that night over and over again… I did what I had to to save him from that life…" He rebutted, defending his actions as he walked down the stairs.
"Oh, please… Don't act like you're some kind of noble messiah! You ran away, plain and simple! You abandoned him!" Goro spat, precisely picking his words to get under Takuto's skin.
"He deserved better!" Takuto growled back.
The pain in Ren's head grew stronger and stronger. His vision was growing blurry. His hearing grew muffled.
Rumi…? Died…? Wh-Why did that…?
Ren gasped for air, his whole body screamed in agony as images began appearing in his mind.
"Shit! There's people here!"
"Who the hell are you?! What are you doing in my house?!"
"Fuck!"
Blood.
"Dad!"
"Grandpa!"
"Dammit!"
"They can't tell the police! Shut 'em up!"
"Get away! Ren!"
Arms grabbing him and holding him against their chest.
Pain in his arm.
Blood.
Blood on his face.
The strong smell of iron.
"A-A-Aaaaa…." Ren gasped breathlessly as more details flooded into his mind.
He swiped at his face.
His hands were clean.
His face felt wet and sticky.
Why? Why?! Why?! Why wouldn't the blood come off?! Get off! Get off get off get off!!!
"Senpai!" Kasumi's voice couldn't reach him.
The red haired woman rushing upstairs.
An older lady downstairs.
The burglars.
Blood.
"Granny!"
A closet.
Boxes.
"Get in, Ren! Get in!"
A stinging pain in his knee.
"Now listen to me. You need to stay quiet. Don't make a sound. And don't come out. No matter what. Okay?"
"M-Mama…!"
"It's okay… I'll keep you safe…"
A kiss on his forehead.
Boxes hiding him at the back of the closet.
The door closing.
Rumi walking away, pulling out her phone.
"Get out now! I'm calling the police!"
"The hell you are! I'm not going to prison!"
"Then run! Get the fuck away from me!"
"You are not making that call!"
"Too late!"
"You damn bitch!"
"Get away from there!"
"Don't tell me what to do!"
A bloodcurdling scream.
Rumi.
Rumi collapsing.
Blood.
Lots of blood.
A knife.
A knife dripping with blood.
Ragged breaths.
"A-A-Aaaaaaa...Ahhhh! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" Ren howled in terror, crumpling onto the floor, clutching his head, acid rising up from his stomach. Tears, snot and sweat dripping down his face.
"Ren!" Goro yelled out, hoping to bring the frenzied Ren back to reality.
"This is exactly what I wanted to avoid…" Takuto lamented as he slowly and carefully walked over to Ren. To his son.
"... What the fuck did you do?"
"I-I…"
"Jesus Christ, man… I only wanted to make some easy money…"
"I… I didn't mean to…"
"Well, you did! Shit, dude, shit! Where's the kid?!"
"W-What?"
"Where's the fucking kid?!"
"I-I'm not gonna kill a child!"
"Well, we have to! He's seen our faces! If he tells the police, we're fucked!"
"D-Dammit…"
Objects thrown across the room.
The closet door opening.
Ren holding his breath. Frozen like a statue.
"Not here, either…"
Police sirens.
"Shit! Already?!"
"We gotta get out of here!"
"Quick! The back window! Move!"
Footsteps.
Silence.
"Uuuuuuggggghhhhhhhh….." Ren sobbed uncontrollably, choking on his own saliva as his throat closed up. His heart pounding wildly. Panic coursing through his entire body.
"Ren!"
Ren looked up with tearful eyes. The familiar face of his father smiled down at him, his messy chestnut hair covering one of his eyes.
"Ren."
Ren looked up with tearful eyes. The familiar face of his father smiled down at him, his chestnut hair slicked back and exposing his forehead.
"Da...ddy…?"
"...Dad…?"
"Shh… It's okay… It's me, I'm right here…"
Takuto outstretched his arms, smiling softly at his son.
Ren flung himself into his father's chest.
Takuto wrapped his arms around his son.
The voices in Ren's head broke their silence once again.
"Don't avert your eyes! Embrace the truth, no matter how much it hurts!"
"Look away! Return to your life of blissful ignorance."
Ren squeezed his eyes shut, wishing for the voices to shut up.
Takuto soothingly stroked his fluffy, raven hair.
The chestnut haired man couldn't help but pull Ren closer, savouring his chance to finally hug his son again after all these years.
"I-I don't wanna remember…" Ren whimpered as images of his mother collapsing into a puddle of her own blood repeated over and over in his mind.
Takuto gently kissed his forehead.
"You don't have to…" He whispered back.
The shadow that had stuck close to Takuto moved, black and blue tendrils protruding from it's form.
"Stay with me in this reality… We can start over again, if that's what you want…" Takuto cooed, wiping the tears away from Ren's red eyes.
"Get the hell away from him!" Goro growled as he struggled against the iron grip of the shadows holding him back.
"Senpai! I know it hurts but you can't listen to him!" Kasumi cried, desperately trying to catch Ren's fractured attention.
Takuto ignored the two thieves.
"With our memories, we could bring back Rumi… Wouldn't that be wonderful? We could be a family again… Doesn't that sound lovely?" Takuto murmured softly into Ren's ear.
"I-I…"
"Don't look away! You mustn't ignore the truth! Fight through the pain and move on!"
"You don't need to endure this pain… It's okay to run away…"
"I… I want to forget…"
"No! Ren! Don't listen to him!" Goro screeched, wrestling against the shadows pinning him down.
"If that's what you want…" Whispered Takuto with a soft, loving smile.
As those words entered Ren's ears, a wave of exhaustion washed over him. He couldn't fight against the sudden heaviness of his eyelids. In mere seconds, he was fast asleep and snuggled against his father's chest.
"Azathoth… Kindly see Ren's friends out of the hospital, please." The chestnut haired man requested as he stood up, carrying Ren with a protective grasp.
"Of course, my lord." The shadow-like figure bowed respectfully before grabbing Goro and Kasumi, dragging them towards the opposite exit, away from Ren.
Takuto smiled down at his son as he walked up the stairs towards the large door leading deeper into the palace.
"Ren!"
"Senpai!"
Takuto stopped and looked over his shoulder at the two as he opened the door.
"Shhhhh… Let him rest…"
Ren groaned quietly as he stirred from his deep slumber.
What happened…? Why did he feel like he was forgetting something…? Why did his head hurt a little bit…?
"Ren? You okay? Are you having another nightmare?" A woman's voice called out to him.
Who…?
Ren's eyes gently fluttered open. A red haired woman was smiling down at him.
"Ah! You're finally awake! Good morning, Sweetheart!" She giggled happily.
Ren frowned in confusion. Something didn't feel right.
Rumi rolled her eyes and smirked softly.
"I know you're not a morning person but c'mon… Don't you remember what we're doing today?" She sighed as she picked out some clothes for the boy.
"No…?" Ren replied honestly with a confused tilt of his head.
"You really do forget things quickly, don't you?!" The redhead laughed brightly. "We're going to the theme park today! Remember? Your daddy made a breakthrough in his research and said we should go out to celebrate!"
Oh. That must've been what he was forgetting.
"Oh yeah! I remember now! I wanna go on the roller coasters!" The raven haired boy cheered as he flung himself out of bed.
He froze as he walked past the mirror.
Wh-Why… Why didn't the reflection of the small child seem right?
He frowned, confused and worried as he stared at himself. Rumi glanced over as she placed the clothes onto Ren's bed.
"Hmm… You have been growing quite a bit lately… I think you're definitely tall enough for the big roller coasters now!" She declared, patting Ren's head as she flashed him a beautiful grin.
"Breakfast is ready!" Takuto called out from the living room, placing the plates onto the dining table.
"C'mon! Hurry up and get dressed so we can eat!" Rumi said, ruffling Ren's hair as she walked through the door frame.
Ren wasn't sure why, but the sight of her made a swell of emotion swirl around in his chest. He ran over to the red haired woman and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Whoa!"
"I love you, Mama…"
Rumi stared down at the raven haired boy with a stunned expression before chuckling lovingly.
"Where'd this come from? I love you too, sweetie." She cooed with a soft smile.
Takuto watched the two from his position at the living room doorway.
Rumi gently stroking Ren's fluffy hair. Ren sweetly nuzzling his face into her stomach. His family showing their affection.
Takuto watched the two most important people in his life.
And smiled.