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The light from the headlights illuminating the dark night resembled fireflies. From his position in the back seat, Mikey could observe them. There was a certain beauty about them.
The boy's head was leaning against the window of the vehicle. He was looking out; his dark eyes were like a calm sea. However, inside him, many feelings boiled and clashed. There were so many of them that he didn't know what to feel, so he opted for a facade of disinterest.
He looked ahead in the rearview mirror. His older brother gave him a look. "Relax, Manji," he seemed to say. The boy didn't look back at him, instead, he returned his focus to the road. They must have known by now, he thought, that he was trying to distract himself from what was about to come. He wiped his sweaty hands on the car seat.
It was an important day for him. The most important day of his life.
This night is vital because it is his tenth birthday. However, unlike his old birthdays, this was a special one.
Today was his tenth birthday, and he would finally meet his soulmate.
Mikey didn't understand exactly how the system worked. His brother had tried to explain it to him multiple times, but he had always ignored the old stories in favor of the newer, more interesting tales of gang members and bikers. Now, he found it hard to admit, he regretted a little bit that he had been such an idiot. At least, if he'd paid a little attention, he could pretend to have the confidence he didn't have.
But, oh, please. Don't think Mikey was an idiot. Because nuh-huh, he wasn't, no sir!
Even if he had turned a deaf ear to what his brother had said, he was still a proud member of the Sano Clan. And, as such, it was impossible for him not to know the basics. You know, the whole soulmate thingy. Shinichiro had drilled it into his head, and to him, his grandfather, and to his grandfather, his grandfather's grandfather. Izana used to tell him that it was a tradition as old as history itself. Mikey thought it was bullshit invented by his stupid stepbrother, but he couldn't deny that something inside him stirred when he imagined it.
A gift from the gods, a miracle they had bestowed only on the Sano family. The Sano, the loyal warriors of the gods, had survived war, famine, and misery. They had fallen, and just the same, they had risen from the ashes like the phoenix. These were they. The only human beings who enjoyed the privilege of finding their other half, of living the true "happy ending".
Those were the stories Mikey had grown up with, the ones Izana told him before bedtime. Now, they had finally come true.
Mikey tried to go over the steps in his mind. He couldn't screw it up. Shinichiro told him that there would be no problem with waiting for his soulmate to show up again (indeed, it had taken him two tries himself), but Mikey couldn't afford it. He didn't believe in second choices. The first one is the only real one for him.
Besides, he couldn't let that idiot Izana get away with it! He would show him that he was better and that he was definitely, definitely good enough to take his soulmate by himself!
The car stopped. They had arrived. The street lamps were already far from sight, and instead, all that could be seen around them was the rubble of an old building and a pile of dry bushes.
Clack. Clack.
Mikey could hear Shinichiro and his partner getting out of the car, locking the doors behind them. He still wasn't allowed to do that. Both men had to secure the sacred ground, so they couldn't have a hyperactive child getting in their way.
The boy's heart galloped in his chest, unable to calm down. That which for so many years seemed so alien was finally here. His fingertips tingled, imagining the moment when he would touch the soft skin of the one who would be his life partner. He smiled; he couldn’t wait to meet him.
When Shinichiro made sure that everything was in order inside the sacred ground, he indicated that he could leave. Perhaps for the first time in his entire existence, Mikey obeyed his older brother's orders.
In the dim moonlight, Shinichiro's face looked almost heavenly. His brother's eyes pierced him, trying to perceive any weakness within his being. They could afford no mistakes in the holy ceremony. Of course, just as he expected, Mikey showed no insecurity whatsoever.
Shinichiro smiled, resting his heavy hand on his little brother's small shoulder. He was proud. Mikey didn't need to exchange any words with him to know that he was.
The black-haired man looked at his partner. He mumbled something that Mikey ignored. The other man slowly took the sacred tool out of his ceremonial bag. So too, he passed the lovers' red ribbon and the unifying elixir. Mikey wanted to laugh at the stupid names, but he had heard them so many times that they had already lost a little of their humor.
Instead, the boy simply watched the interactions between the two closely.
He hadn't thought about it until that moment, but when he finally found his soulmate, wouldn't he be the same as them? His heart flipped inside his chest. The strong rush of blood had caused his cheeks to redden.
Shinichiro had to control him from running off like an excited puppy.
He placed the sacred tool in his young hands. It was heavier than he imagined, much softer too. Then they both dressed Mikey in the holy robes. Once he was ready, they handed him the lasso and the tonic.
Mikey looked at them, his huge eyes full of anticipation.
In a show of affection that was not foreign to him, but which particularly that day felt special, Shinichiro knelt at his little brother's height and took him in his arms. He breathed in his scent and kissing him on the temple, whispered in his ear.
"Don't push yourself, Manji. Everything will be all right," he assured him. "You're a very talented boy, perhaps the most talented among us. Someone like you could never fail this."
Mikey wasn't so sure. He contemplated the object in his little hands with his head downcast.
"And even..." Shinichiro held him by the chin and forced him to look up. "And even if that were so, there would be nothing wrong, do you understand?"
He nodded. Shinichiro smiled at him, a kind smile, and patted his shoulder. At that moment, at the moment when his heart was filled with confidence and his brother's figure loomed over him, Mikey understood why he had been chosen as the clan's patriarch. It wasn't because his old grandfather wanted to retire for the hell of it. Shinichiro really deserved the position he was in.
"Now," sentenced his brother. "Go over there and claim what's yours, tiger."
Mikey smiled. Then he closed his eyes. He had forgotten because of the heat of the moment, but he was a Sano. There was nothing he couldn't do, no feat he couldn't accomplish. He reviewed the route in his mind. He wouldn’t get lost. Shinichiro and his soulmate would be watching him from afar. With light steps, he began the sacred walk to the place where his mate stood. One, two, three...
When he arrived at the place, he applied what he had been taught during the last months. Grandfather was right, many traps wanted to separate him from his soul mate. He had to overcome adversities to show that he was worthy of receiving a mate.
Of course, he passed without further complication. After all, he had been prepared by his brother Izana and he had been one of the most difficult ones.
With the same smooth steps he had taken all the way, Mikey arrived at the sacred temple of his soul mate. From that point on, things were simpler. He gently opened the door that separated them, and there he saw him:
To the boy who would be her life partner, with whom he would grow old, to whom he would give his body and soul. Who would be his completely, forever and ever.
He approached his bed quietly. When he caught a glimpse of him, he couldn’t believe his eyes. That boy was an angel, he had to be. His black hair fell carefree on the pillow, jet-black curls framed a delicate porcelain-skinned face. Mikey breathed in sharply, stepping closer to him. His mate's eyelashes were like thick curtains protecting something precious and, for a moment, he was tempted to wake him up, just so he could discover the treasure hidden behind them.
But he couldn't yet, it was too soon.
Instead, he contented himself with gazing at the boy's chubby mouth and tender upturned nose. He really was a cute little boy.
A wave of heat came over him, and he knew he had to hurry to finish the ritual. He could almost feel Shinichiro's deep gaze watching him from outside the place, urging him not to stray from his goal.
Excited by his mind's machinations, Mikey deposited on his soulmate's nose the elixir. With it, he would make sure his mate's heart was open for the union. Once he was sure the elixir had taken effect, he wrapped the little angel with the red ribbon.
Mikey was ecstatic, a smile of happiness spread across his face and he could feel his cheeks hurt from showing such joy. The fate was almost sealed.
Only the last point was missing.
Safe by the knowledge that his partner was already sufficiently protected, Mikey retraced his steps. He gently closed the door to his partner's room and instead walked calmly into the next room.
This was the hardest part. Everything before had been child's play, for this was the real test of courage.
Inhaling a breath of air, Mikey looked at them one last time. In his mind, he thanked them for doing their job well. He admired the woman's cute nose and the man's dark hair.
If he mumbled a promise, only he will know.
His fingers grew pale as he held the sacred tool between his hands - the knife - with deep force.
Mikey was not weak. He would not fail.
ZAS. Sluuuuuuuuurp. Sluuuuuuuuurp.
ZAS. Sluuuuuuuuurp. Sluuuuuuuuurp.
It was fine. The knife was pretty sharp. Mikey had made it himself. Otherwise, one of them would have woken up before he could finish his work. Well, even if they had...
Drip, drip, drip.
Blood dripped from the knife onto the carpet, and Mikey admired his handiwork. It was a clean-cut, left to right. He smiled; he had been a fool. Even if one had woken up, what could they have said, if he had made sure to cut his throats?
He placed the knife on the ceremonial blanket. Now it was finally time to go.
Unfortunately, he couldn't waste time getting rid of the blood that stained his clothes and hands. He hoped his soulmate wouldn't be too bothered by the smell. Well, he should get used to it a bit... They still had to put him in the trunk of the car for safety reasons. Besides, Emma's ceremony would be soon and…
He was getting too far ahead of himself. Shinichiro wouldn’t accept that it was taking longer than expected. Even for corrupt cops, there was a breaking point…
He took the angel in his arms and lifted him without difficulty. He was thin. According to what Shinichiro had told him, he was only a year younger than him. It was okay, even if he was immature at first, Mikey would teach him everything a good member of the Sano family should know.
Before leaving, Mikey noticed something he hadn't seen when he entered the room. Above the door hung a small sign that read:
"Takemichi."
He looked down at the little boy in his arms and, giving him a gentle peck on the lips, whispered:
"Shall we go now, Takemitchy?"