Chapter Text
It was supposed to be a happy day.
Nothing at all ever indicated that today was going to be anything but a happy day. The sun was shining bright but not too hot that it burned. There were just enough clouds to provide shade but not enough to be considered as overcast. There was a light breeze and the usual sound of chirping birds and squeals of kittens and cubs. The smell of the freshly sprouted greens and trees as the world slowly awoke from its slumber was like perfume that wafted through the air. The laughter of children and usual greeting exchanged by adults echoed slightly throughout the whole district.
Everything from the first light of dawn until the sun had fully emerged, waking up the world, indicated that it was going to be a happy day.
Except it was anything but a happy day.
The sound of retching and muffled sobs echoed loudly inside the windowless room that was made with white walls and illuminated brightly by a pearl-like orb. The smell of rust and copper mixed with vomit and antiseptic, slowly filled the rather empty room save for a slightly slanted metal table with raised edges where a suspiciously looking human-shaped lump of bones and muscle was laid uncovered. Attached to the table were several faucets and drains with a cabinet underneath it that hid the large pipe that connected the table drain to the outside. An open surgical case cart filled with trays of different surgical equipment stained with blood and flesh was beside the table. Another cart was beside it that had two basins, one filled with bloody water and the other, slightly overflowing with what seemed to be stripped skin, muscle and a few unrecognizable human organs. A discarded pair of gloves could be seen beside the basin alongside a few bloody rags.
A woman with short peach-colored hair wearing a bloodstained white lab coat approached the source of sobbing and retching sounds. She removed the string of the mask that hung on the right side of her ear, letting it dangle beside her face. She watched indifferently at the ugly sight the pink-haired child made in front of her.
“M-mama.” The woman clicked her tongue and irritation colored her face for a second before it morphed back to indifference. She grabbed the shoulders of the child and forced her to look at her, pinching the soft chin of the child so tightly that it would leave bruises that would not fade for weeks.
“What did I say about addressing me while inside this room?”
The child shivered slightly, tears and snot flowing down her already pale face. The woman tightened her grip until the child groaned in pain. Her eyes darkened considerably. Seeing this, the child squirmed even more before she stopped her futile attempt of escaping the tight grip that forced her to stay when the woman’s fingernail dug at the soft skin of her chin, breaking past the skin slightly.
“What did I say about addressing me while inside this room?”
The child’s tears were still flowing and mixed with the small amount of blood that trickled from the small cut on her soft chin. She sniffled and shivered, either in fear or pain, the woman wasn’t sure. It wasn't as if she really cared that much in the first place, anyway.
After a few seconds, the child opened her small mouth and addressed the woman in front of her. Despite how steady her childish voice sounded, there was a mixture of heartbreak and confusion at the end.
“Momoshi-sensei…”
The woman’s indifferent expression broke as a small and gentle smile plastered itself on her face. She removed her grip on the child's delicate chin and grabbed a white handkerchief from inside her coat’s inner pockets. Almost as if she was not the same person who caused the bruise and the cut, she delicately and reverently wiped away any trace of tear stain, snot and blood away from the child’s pale face.
“That's better. Remember what I always tell you and you won't get hurt, okay? I like good girls the best, and you're a good girl, aren't you?”
"Yes. I'm a good girl, I promise."
Momoshi's smile brightened even more and patted the child's head softly as if she was incapable of pain. When she saw the child was considerably calmer, she lowered her body just a bit so that she was looking straight into the child's vibrant green eyes. She reached both hands out in front and her eyes narrowed with her smile.
"Now, let's get back to what we were doing."
The child remained silent, her small hands gripping the edges of her gray shirt that was far too long for her. There was fear and trepidation in her vivid green eyes as her gaze went past Momoshi and lingered on the mess of flesh and bones there. She wanted to shake her head but the fear that in the end it would be her who would be lying on that cold, sterile and metallic slab made her bow her head instead.
"Would you like me to carry you?"
Seeing no reply from the child, Momoshi took matters into her own hands and lifted the child's small body into her embrace. Her small arms wrapped around Momoshi's neck and the child settled the still pale face onto the crook of her neck. She could feel the child's form shivering and a frown marred her face. Walking back to the table, she grabbed the small metallic stool with her free hand and dragged it closer to the table. Patting the child in her arms lightly, she settled her onto the top of the stool and lightly nudged her to leave her embrace. She could feel hesitation in the child’s movements and made a mental note to work on that as soon as she can. Hesitation was an emotion that was far too costly to be invested in.
“Turn around.”
The child did so, and she watched as her already pale face turned a shade paler that she could see the veins on her face and neck too clearly. She removed her hold on the child's body and grabbed a pair of clean gloves. Putting it on, she began to systematically move the lump of flesh on the table. The sound of squishing and squelching with the occasional sound of bone hitting metal echoed throughout the room. After she had finished rearranging the lump into something far more recognizable, she turned towards the child and smiled.
“Now, let’s continue unwrapping your present, shall we?”
There was a short few seconds of silence before a small and shaky voice answered.
“Y-yes, Momoshi-sensei.”
She smiled, pleased at the positive response she had received. At the rate they were going, they would be done just before lunch time. She grabbed the skull that was placed at the top end of the table and moved it close enough so that Sakura could look at it.
“Very good. Now, this bone I’m holding in my hands right now is called a skull. It is a bony structure that supports the face and forms a protective cavity for the brain. It is composed of many bones, which are formed by intramembranous ossification, and joined by sutures. Now, your present is found in here and we're going to get it out in a while. But first, let's finish up with these. The organ I'm holding on to now is called the liver..."
The sound of Momoshi’s voice as she resumed her lecture on the different parts of the human body reverberated throughout the enclosed white room. The smell of rust and copper was thick enough to cover the scent of fear that the small child exuded while standing with shaky legs atop the metal stool.
When they finally reached the end of the lesson, nothing but a single sphenoid bone delicately laid atop a clean towel was left of the body that had been laid down on the table earlier.
Momoshi’s serious and indifferent expression changed, morphing back to the gentle and loving expression that the child was used to. She had removed her bloodstained lab coat, her mask and gloves leaving behind a powder-blue colored dress that reached her knees that was spotless.
She turned towards the child, her eyes twinkling with love and affection as she took the still shaking child into her arms and kissed her on the cold forehead.
“Happy fourth birthday, Sakura-chan. I hope you like your present.”
Momoshi watched as the child looked into her eyes, those beautiful and vivid green eyes slightly red and teary full of questioning intent. She laughed, the sound like small bells tinkling. Without pause, she gently turned the child towards the sphenoid bone and pointed at it, her fingers gliding delicately at the edges of the bone.
“Why, of course I’m referring to this. It took Mama quite a while to unwrap your present now, didn't I?”
The child shivered even more and buried herself on Momoshi’s neck, silent sobs wracking her body although no tears fell from her eyes. Momoshi’s eyes darkened before it returned back to normal and started comforting the child, patting her back softly. It was the child's first time so she didn't mind as much, she would learn soon.
“Let’s go out and eat dango. You’ll have to take a bath though as we wouldn’t want our birthday girl to smell when we go out now, do we?”
She smiled secretly when she noticed the child’s gaze lingering on the sphenoid bone as they left the white windowless room. She could see a hint of curiosity and awe hidden behind the fear, hesitation and disgust in the child’s eyes. Momoshi smiled, pleased at what she had seen. In time, she was sure that this child in her arms would soon fit right in with her in this room. If she had to make use of underhanded measures in the process, well, nobody would know.