Orphans (Invitation Only)

[Aoi Akuma]

The sounds of heels clacking against cement echoed through the nearly abandoned alley. Few people occupied the area and the ones that were, were mostly homeless sitting along the way in rags carrying cups full of change. Coins rattled as they were dropped into a cup. The owner of the cup, a fairly young man with dirtied silver hair, looked up for the person who placed them and saw a cloaked woman walking down the alley. Her cloak swayed with each step she took, her long legs quickening there pace. Cerulean eyes peeked from out of their headdress to peer at an old building. It was a sturdy building with only a few broken windows here and there. Tightening her grip on a package in her hand she walked forward towards it.

“Miss?”

A small voice ranged out. Aoi turned her attention to a small girl. She recognized her from the day she had taken the princess.

“You’re the one who opened the pocky right?” Aoi nodded softly “Do you know where the lady who gave us the pocky is?” She turned her head to see the girl’s younger brother by the stairs. Returning her glance to the girl she sighed. “She’s in a safe place.” The younger girl tilted her head but kept quiet.

Aoi looked around cautiously, sighing she looked down at the orphans. Switching the package to her left hand she rummaged through her pocket giving a sigh of relief when she found what she was looking for. Pulling out another package she knelt down and handed it to the little girl. Seeing her confusion Aoi’s eyes softened. “There strawberries. Share them with your friends in the orphanage.” She tilted her head towards the building. The girl’s eyes sparkled and she handed the package to her brother who ran inside.

Aoi’s face furrowed slightly as the girl began to go back inside. “Hold on.” She finally said. The girl stopped and turned back towards Aoi. Taking the package back out she motioned for the girl to come towards her. She responded and slowly walked towards her, her eyes filled with curiosity.

“Here,” The girl tilted her head as she was given the package. “Give this to Mr. Ranmaru please…tell him Aoi-san said hello…and thank you.” She nodded and quickly hurried back inside to eat her strawberries.

Aoi smiled as the girl closed the orphanage’s door. Sighing she walked to the wall in front of it and leaned. ‘It’s been awhile since I’ve been around here…without a mission.’ She tilted her head upwards and watched the orphanage; the place she had went to like a home for most of her teenage life. She chuckled softly. ‘When I wasn’t with them.’ Her hand traced the tattoo placed behind her ear, placed by the people she considered family for most of her teenage life.

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“Aoi-san?”

A twelve year old Aoi turned her head at the voice. “What is it Ranmaru-san?” The words were spoken quietly, barely a whisper, and yet the old man heard her.

“They’re here.”

They were only two words and yet Aoi smirked at them knowingly. “Yes sir.” She spoke as she uncrossed her legs and rose. She grabbed her pack, already packed for future knowledge, and slipped her mother’s knife on its holder attached to her thigh.

Brushing her hair back she pulled into a tight ponytail she strode pass the old man and out the back way, unknown to the outside. A man stood outside waiting for her expectantly. She nodded towards him and walked into the car behind him.

“I’ll be training today correct.” The words were spoken knowingly.

“Correct Aoi, and you’ll also become a member as of today.”

Cerulean eyes snapped towards him questioning the answer.

“But don’t you usually have to wait until your 15?” The man chuckled deeply at that.

“Yes, but you’re a special case seeing as you could probably take most of our 15 year olds down with only your hands, maybe having to use that knife of yours,” He looked proudly at Aoi.

“So today you’ll be getting the mark.”
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Aoi subconsciously rubbed the tattoo hidden behind her hair as she stared at the sky. ‘Time certainly has passed.'

[Cadian Armana Virria]

With all that had been going on in Area 11 Cadian had been considering moving on. He never stayed in one place for long, but he’d never stayed for such a short period of time either. It seemed unfair to these orphans to abandon them so soon. They’d experienced enough abandonment in their lives and Cadian hated to add to that. At the same time though, Cadian couldn’t risk exposure and being captured again even if Milani was working for the doctor now. The thought of leaving these children, these Japanese children, however, made Cadian feel like he was just as horrible as the Britannian royals, and it was that thought that made him stay despite the danger that was steadily increasing in Japan.

For the most part, Cadian visited the orphanage in Shinjuku Ghetto every day to entertain the children. Even once in a while he missed a day for various reasons, but tried not to miss two back to back. He was mostly ignored by the other inhabitants of the ghetto now that he was a familiar face, and Cadian knew most of them by face. As he approached the orphanage, however, there was someone who was unfamiliar to the orphanage, but not to Cadian. She was the same girl who had taken the princess, and who had been at the Tokyo Memorial earlier in the week. She was a Black Knight if Cadian’s assumptions were correct. (Who else would bother to kidnap a Britannian princess?) It made him wonder what she was doing here. There was no reason for the Black Knights to be concerned with the orphanage.

Suspicious of the girl and her intentions, Cadian’s eyes narrowed a bit as he approached the front steps. “What are you doing here? I wouldn’t think you or your allies would have any interest in an orphanage.” It was a risk to practically accuse her of being a terrorist, but Cadian wanted to see how she’d react.

[Aoi Akuma]

“What are you doing here? I wouldn’t think you or your allies would have any interest in an orphanage.”

Cerulean eyes looked towards the direction of the voice. She recognized the speaker as one of the men from the Tokyo Memorial; her eyes narrowed slightly. Why was he here? More importantly, what did he mean by allies. Well, the only thing she could think of would be that he was referring to the Black Knights, though how he knew was beyond her (though she’d make sure she’d find that bit of information out herself). The bluenette studied him closely while contemplating her answer. He had a slim figure, she mused, and, unless there was some hidden weight, he couldn’t be more than a hundred pounds. He had silver hair, blue eyes, nothing too unusual in Aoi’s book. Though there was something about his eyes that made her think more deeply about him.

“My friends have no interest in this place,” ‘And I pray they never will.’ Aoi finished her sentence in her thoughts as she answered the man. She felt no reason to hide what he already knew, it would only make him more suspicious, and if he wasn’t going to do anything about it in the beginning she doubted he would now. Besides, something told her that he wasn’t one who would start something in front of the Orphanage. “My interest in this orphanage, however, is not something I’d share with somebody who hasn’t even given his name.” Aoi stated coolly, not bothered by the fact that she was talking with a complete stranger.

Her eyes flickered back to the orphanage as she pondered Mr. Ranmaru’s reaction to what lay in the package. She hoped it would help; the orphanage was always on hard times even more now that the war has begun to build. Even so, Mr. Ranmaru always made good with what he could find always taking care of the children before himself. What Aoi placed in that package was merely a small portion of what she owed him all those years.

‘I wonder if he still cries when he’s happy’ the bluenette mused, if so she knew he’d be crying when he saw all the money and other items she had placed in the package. The money in the package was mostly earned from her little…side jobs that she did before she was with the Black Knights, the items were stolen from the houses she used to sleep at when she was on the move. The houses were owned by rich Britannians who probably would never notice so she felt no regrets in taking them. Now that she had joined the Black Knights though, she had no use for the extra money laying around so she felt she should give it to a good cause, and what better cause then to the orphanage that took her in.

Aoi turned her attention back onto the silver haired boy.

“I answered the most immediate of your questions so tell me, what interest do you have in this orphanage?” A protective tone lay underneath Aoi’s voice as she spoke of the orphanage.