《CHAPTER ONE》
《WARNINGS: SLIGHT GOREY THEMES》
THE WIND BLEW PAST, making the woman shudder. She paused, looking over her shoulder. The black-haired male stopped, pulling the lavender scarf closer to the child in his arms before walking back to the woman’s side.
Fallen leaves swirled at their feet, brushing along their legs and hitting their shoes before moving on. The trees swayed with the breeze. The h/c woman held the bundle of orange blossoms a little tighter, fearing the wind might destroy them.
They ventured further into the cemetery, passing rows, and rows of other headstones. Finally, they arrived at a black gate. The woman pulled a key from her pocket, grabbing the lock with her other hand. She opened the gate once it had been unlocked, frowning at the state in front of her.
“We’ll have to come back another day and clean off Sobo’s headstone,” She said aloud, running her fingers over the smooth stone of her Grandmother’s grave.
“And Jiji’s,” The male noted. The woman nodded in agreement before crouching in front of a grave. She reached out, brushing the dead leaves from the surface.
L/n Juno. 8 June 1954 -- 31 October 2018.
“Hard to believe Okaasan’s been gone for a year,”
Placing the child down, the older man ran his fingers over the engravings. The infant leaned against his knee, her small hand wrapped around his much larger finger. His gray eyes shifted from the stone to the woman beside him.
“Yeah, but,” She placed the bundle of orange blossoms on the ground. “It’s better she didn’t see any of this. If her sickness didn’t kill her, seeing me turn out the way I did would have.”
“Y/n, don’t say that,” He sighed. “You know Okaasan would have gotten out of that bed and beat your ass for saying that.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” She chuckled airily. “I wish she could have met Sora, though.”
At the sound of her name, the child looked toward her mother. Y/n smiled softly, reaching to pull the hat back over her ears. She giggled and nestled back against her uncle.
“She would have loved her. Especially with how much she looks like Satoru,” Sho said, kissing the girl’s cheek.
“Shota,” The woman said, standing to her feet with a fluid motion. “Has anyone been inside the mausoleum?”
The man looked over at the white concrete structure. The words ‘Haiyaku’ were engraved into the stone, covered by brass lettering. There were four pillars on all sides. A wooden door stood in the center, the surface engraved with an intricate, careful design. On either side of the door, there was a carving in the stone of a woman wearing drapes, holding a child to her chest.
“Uh,” The man stood up, pulling the child up as well. “I’m not sure. I...I don’t think anyone has been in there since...since Neoma-nee passed.”
She looked at her brother for a moment. “I’m going to go inside.”
“Y/n, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” He frowned. “That’s going to smell bad. Plus...you know Okaasan didn’t want you going in there.”
“Neoma was my sister too, Shota,” She said, rubbing the back of her neck. “Though, I didn’t know her for very long.”
“Just...be careful,” Shota warned, shifting the child to his hip. “There might be a curse sealed inside of there. I’m pretty sure that’s why we weren’t allowed there when we’d come to visit Sobo,”
“Yeah, I know,” She said.
Moving towards the door, she paused. A shudder ran down her spine when she grabbed the knob. Brushing it to the side, the woman opened the door, walking inside of the room. She frowned as she felt around for a light, though she found nothing.
Snapping her fingers, the room became illuminated by a flame that sparked near the ceiling. Immediately, her eyes fell upon the curse. It was curled up in the corner of the room, cooing and sniffling softly. Its eyes were shut, fat tears rolling down its cheeks. Its body didn’t look human...but it wasn’t like anything she’d ever seen before. One side of it seemed to be human, with smooth, porcelain pale skin, and delicate-looking hands. The other side looked decayed, flesh rotting and falling off to reveal the skeleton beneath it.
“N-No, H-H-Haiyaku-sama!” It cooed. “N-Not m-my f-f-f-f-fault! I-I-I di-didn’t do it. S-S-Swear! S-S-Swear! It wa-wasn’t me!”
She frowned, her eyebrows furrowing together. This curse wasn’t hostile. It seemed...frightened.
And that’s when she saw it. The stone covering was moved to the side, revealing the empty space within it. Looking down, she read the tag.
Haiyaku Neoma.
Her eyes widened.
“W-W-W-Wasn’t me!” The curse said, shaking its head. “I-I would n-never lie t-t-to you, H-Haiyaku-sama!”
Her eyes shifted towards it. “What are you?”
Slowly it stood up. It had the resemblance of a boy. Curly black hair, and a milky purple eye. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought she was looking at a normal boy. However, half of his body was gone. The left side of his head, eye, and cheek were missing, only having the skull to show. Parts of his arm were missing as well, along with his fingers, and some of his leg. He raised his hands up, fumbling with his fingers.
“I-I am the g-guardian for the H-Haiyaku-sama graves,” It said. “I keep the b-bad spirits away, and protect those w-who’ve passed.”
Suddenly, it began to weep again.
“O-Oh! B-But I’ve failed!” It said, shoulders shaking with its tears. “Neoma-sama! I-It wasn’t me! I swear, Haiyaku-sama!”
“Where is Neoma’s body?” She asked.
“Oh, I-I’ve never seen it b-before,” It said, wiping its cheeks. “In all m-my years! My 651 years of p-protecting! I’ve n-never seen a body rise!”
“Rise?” She echoed quickly. “What do you mean, rise?”
“I-I was tending to J-Juno-sama,” It sniffled. “When I heard s-something. When I come back, I-I saw the stone moving on its own! Oh, p-please! Sp-Spare me, Y/n-sama! I d-didn’t do it!”
She ignored that it knew her name. “Shut up, I’m not killing you. Go on.”
“N-Neoma-sama...she just s-stood up! S-She walked right past me, she did! W-Walked right out!” It exclaimed. “I-I called to her, b-but she ac-acted like I w-wasn’t there!”
“When did this happen?”
“Why..i-it was t-two days ago, it was,” It nodded, confirming itself.
“Your given name as the guardian deity,” She said. “What is it?”
“A-Athanasios, m’lady,” It bowed to her.
“Can you leave the family spot, Athanasios?” She asked, opening the door.
“W-Well, y-yes, b-b-but--!”
“No buts,” She said. “You’re coming with me.”
“I-I...o-of course, Y/n-sama,” It said, nervously trailing after her.
“You can take a human appearance?” She asked.
“Y-yes…”
She glanced back, watching its flesh heal over the spots where it had decayed. His eyes shifted from a milky tint to a shimmering shade of amethysts.
“Y/n? What’s going on?” Shota asked as she walked towards him. “Who’s that?”
“Apparently,” She said, raking a hand through her hair.
“The dead just can’t fucking stay dead.”
《CHAPTER ONE: END》
《IMAGE NOT MINE》