Date - September 27th 2022. Tuesday.
It has been exactly one week since Inori's relocation, the time being 2:30 in the afternoon.
Katsuyama's central shopping Street was filled to it's brim as this was the hottest time of the day.
House wives were navigating the bustling street in preparation for lunch and dinner.
An onigiri seller was dusting his stand when one of his goods suddenly vanished.
He didn't notice and continued his cleaning.
Gulp
Inori was devouring the onigiri like it was her first time eating food.
Dirty and smelly, she now resembled an appropriate homeless person.
She quickly finished the the food, regretting why she carried only one as she was still hungry.
She held her legs with her hands as her eyes stared at the road from the alley she was in. Dirt piled left and right accompanied with her neighbors which were rats and cockroaches.
Inori was breathing heavily whilst looking at the street, she had caught a cold from sleeping outside 7 days straight.
Breathe
"I have a cold"
She stated touching her forehead, her body was burning up.
"I have to leave this place soon, too many men have been approaching me"
Remembering the experience that she witnessed two days back, some drunk office workers had approached her at this very alley, she had barely escaped without getting touched.
"I...i want to go home"
She muttered with her throat dry.
Narrator - Inori had tried meeting the police and explaining she was the prime minister's daughter.
Narrator - It was immediately followed with attempts to send her to a psychiatric ward.
"I barely managed to leave there"
She casually continued Narrator's sentence.
"Let... let me just... close my eyes, the cold should subside...after some rest.
With that being said, she covered herself with a dirty News paper besides her.
Inori closed her eyes in hopes of the cold magically disappearing.
About 6 hours pass before she was woken from her slumber by her hunger.
As expected, a single onigiri will do little to a growing child.
It was 8:30 in the evening and some salary workers had began filling the streets.
Inori stood up hurriedly leaving in hopes to avoid them, she had developed a slight case of menpjobia from her previous days experiences with men.
Her feet dragged her shivering body sluggishly, the moonlight caused a beautiful setting although contradicted with inori's tattered state.
"I'm famished, the sleep might have restored some of my strength, but I'm still hungry and thirsty"
She outlined her problems as if having a solution.
Her hands desperately rubbed together to generate some warmth, even a blind person could see she was freezing.
"What.... did I do... to deserve this"
Trying to mutter strength only to shed more tears, Inori's situation had finally settled in.
She was in a place she had never been, although still Japan.
Her hair now dark blue with nails painted black.
Lastly she was announced "dead" Instead of missing which she currently is.
She was starving for answers, anybody would be in her situation.
Now leaving the busy night time streets, Inori finds herself in a small forest behind the coastal scenery Fukui is known for.
Still aimlessly, she wonders deeper into the forest in hopes of finding something—Anything that could be of use, be it shelter food or miraculously even her father waiting for her with open arms. At least let the girl dream.
"A house?"
She spotted a little inn, it was stationed in a small field still in the forest. Not many trees were around the inn, almost as if someone deliberately uprooted them.
Without wasting a second, Inori rushes towards the house, constantly falling but picking her self up, she desperately sprinted like a hospitalized patient leaving her ward.
Her hopes and prayers at the time was finding warmth in the little house, if possible getting a good night sleep there, a shower, some food, anything would be better than nothing.
She finally reaches the inn. Short of breath and strength, she touches the door knob.
To her surprise it wasn't locked.
Steadily pushing the door open, she examines the inner structure. it was obviously dark because of the time but Inori was hardly scared. The floor was dusty and the walls had a strange smell.
Manga of different genres were scattered on the floor as well as some dirty laundry.
Placing her bum down, she sat on the floor and massaged her legs.
"I've been walking for a long time without shoes....my feet hurt"
Her face was barely recognizable, her hair all tangled and her robe a different color caused by dirt.
She stripped and checked her body in search of any injuries,
Some light scars could be found but nothing major.
The whole situation baffled her, a week ago she was dining with the Prime Minister, her one and only father.
Was this whole mess a punishment?
Questions still left unanswered.
Inori looks around, examining the room.
"This place doesn't look that bad"
She thought to herself forcing a smile.
"I can imagine myself living here!"
"I'll put a bed her"
She said pointing at the side of the room.
"Then I'll put a book shelf here!"
She stood up pointing at the corner of the room.
"Yes, this isn't bad at all!"
Nodding her head in agreement, Inori decides to make it her home.
Narrator - Perhaps the cold had damaged her brain, but this was obviously someone else's house.
Narrator - What a stupid girl.
"Okay that's a little bit mean-
Creak
The handle of the door twists from the outside—this was no surprise, the owner of the house had arrived.
"Oh no"
She winced, afraid of what the owner would say seeing a homeless person in their house.
"This is bad!"
Her mind set to panic, Inori hid behind a small shelf in the room.
"Honey! I'm home—!"
A male voice spoke in... English?
"Haha, my American accent is getting pretty good!"
It reverted to Japanese, what a strange fellow.
He was an unbelievably handsome teen, from his height, about 2 years older than Inori.
He had long hair that wasn't in any form of style, left to fall on his nape with some occasional locks resting on his forehead.
He wore a simple white shirt that was larger than his features and black plants that seemed to fit perfectly.
"I didn't think someone would live here"
She thought to herself, remembering the door wasn't locked.
The young man steps inside the house, dropping a black wrapped rod on the floor.
Clang it made a normal metal sound, those were most likely weapons.
"I'll run when their not looking!"
Inori on the other hand was plotting her escape.
The man bends down to remove his shoes.
Dash~!
Inori ran as fast as her frail legs could—towards the door of course.
In that brief moment their eyes meet and she sees his face. Eyes glowing red with a black circles in each, his face too perfect to called human,let alone a boy.
"....what a beautiful girl"
She thought while running outside like a burglar.
The man still crouched from removing his shoes was left dumbfounded....at least before realizing.
"....thief, thief!!!"
"come back here you son of a bitch!!!!!"
He quickly wore his shoes and chased after Inori!
"Ahhhhhh!!!!!why is she so fast!!!!"
Inori yelled seeing he was quickly gaining on her!
"Stop right there criminal scum!!!!"
The man yelled with full speed! He maneuvered his way around the forest like it was his natural habitat.
"Why is she chasing me?!!"
She thought In a panic! What would this person do if he caught up with her.
Narrator - What Inori didn't know was that most people will react this way.
Narrator - I mean what would you do if you found someone else in your house, looking all filthy, then the person rushes out immediately as you step in-
"okay, okay I get it, she thinks I'm a thief!"
She now understood.
Before she could react. The man launches himself at Inori and pins her to the ground!
"Haha! got you now bitch!"
He said with a victorious face.
"I'm going.... to die...."
She thought as he strangled her. The man had placed his two thumbs in between her throat and exerted immense pressure.
He sees tears forming around Inori's eye lids causing him to release his grip.
Inori steals the opportunity and pushes him off her stomach.
Cough! Cough!
Breathe~
She inhales, backing away from the stranger, Inori rubbed her throat he had been strangling.
Wondering why his grip suddenly lessened, no complaints of course.
"I'm alive!"
A wave of relief came to be as she finally caught her breath.
Inori was sitting some meters away from the new fellow, honestly not knowing what to do.
"What were you doing in my house?"
A simple but obvious question to ask given the situation, the boy interrogated Inori.
"I'm terribly sorry ma'am!"
She said while bending down.
"ma'am?"
He wondered with a confused face, Inori had mistaken his gender.
"I didn't know someone lived there, I simply wanted to use the house as refuge to spend the night!"
Her posture still bowing, Inori apologized sincerely.
The boy, seated in front of her had an absent minded look
"She talks funny, like some princess"
He thought to himself hearing Inori's proper grammar, most certainly unexpected given her appearance.
"what am I saying? no one would believe that-
Smack!
The man quickly knocks inori unconscious like a ninja.
"I'm really tired so it's probably better to search her than ask for questions"
"I mean she looks like a homeless person, and hobos steal right?"
The boy searches inori without touching her inappropriately.
The robe she wore had only 2 pockets, both of which were empty.
He notices her temperature was extremely high but pays no mind to it.
".... so she wasn't lying?"
He stayed there feeling bad for knocking her unconscious-
"oh well, best head back home!"
Okay I guess he doesn't feel bad.
He leaves Inori's unconscious body and heads home.
The time was now 10:50, a full moon bathed the entire forest with light.
Surprisingly, the area was quite calm, no sign of a sinner nor even a wild animal.
At least Inori could rest in peace, that's if she survives the night cold.
Speaking of cold, a slight rain had began to fall, it seemed like only a drizzle but could be life threatening to Inori's weakend body.
Step
A foot approaches the sleeping beauty, it was the handsome boy responsible for Inori's unconsciouness.
He was wearing a yellow raincoat, standing to shield him from the little drizzle.
"I can't sleep for some reason"
He muttered to himself staring at Inori.
"...maybe it's because I left her out"
And so he carries Inori back to his house on his back.
"I wonder what moms doing..."
He said out loud staring at the moon, the last word for the day as he carried Inori to his home.