Hollows Eve

Eve of the Morticians Daughter

We’ve seen how the blood moon prophecy affects Lord Death and the weapon that the grim reaper uses in tandem…..it allows one to control fate itself. But now….it is time to truly see into the inner world that exists within purgatory. Lord Death has plans for Kaila so she may grow in her role as the grim reaper….but the burning question that’s been on her mind, as well as everyone else’s who’s reading this, is simple…..why is she here?

Why was she chosen to be the grim reaper? Kaila’s not exactly the most brave and powerful soul, and certainly feels under-qualified to do the job. I mean we’re talking about reaping the souls of demons in order to maintain the proper balance between good and evil so the entire universe won’t fall apart! That’s a huge job for anyone to tackle….this might be more suited for someone like Jack, but he stepped down so Kaila could step up.

And what about her so called “Father”? Is Lord Death really the one who took care of her when she was a little girl? The one who gave her her signature nickname of Midnight Bliss? …..Well we’re about to find out, as Kaila’s nerves will be put to the test.

Kaila woke up from being covered in Lord Death’s black ectoplasm, as she heard the distant winds blow ominously in the back ground. As Kaila laid there on what seemed like a dirty grassland terrain that was pitch black in color, she leaned up and wondered just where the hell she was…….All she could see were tombstones, graves and small tombs with fog covering the dirt covered caskets. There was also fog laced around the area, giving it a very eerie feel. There were virtually no lifeforms all around the area…..nothing but the smell and feel of death all around her…..she was all alone in a creepy cemetary….no Amuki….no Jack to come and back her up……and no Tomomi to come and boost her spirits.

Kaila whimpered in absolute distress and began to back away slowly at the thought of being alone in an extremely creepy, dark, and seemingly abandoned cemetery. Why in the hell would Lord Death transport Kaila here of all places?!

Kaila crawled like a crab on the ground and came across a multitude of skulls being spread across the ground. “AAAH!!!” She jerked her hand away upon touching the skull and got up immediately to survey the area. Upon further inspection……Kaila began to notice that the entire cemetery was covered in bones! Arms, legs, skulls, everything! The entire graveyard was essentially a graveyard of uncharred remains…..

“Wh-what…what is this place?!?! Where am I?!” Kaila said with a terrified look on her face.

“This…….is my realm….” A voice that echoed hauntingly throughout the air surfaced only in Kaila’s mind. The fog started to get thicker and thicker, the sky began to glow from dark blue, to blood red, and the blood red moon began to reveal itself once again. But the clouds, they also began to change from a blend of red that matches the color of the sky, to completely black…..

They swirled around and began to chant noises, voices that spoke the same language that Jack and Steinman spoke when they exorcised the demonic spirits from the gates to the black castle….. “Veni, creator Spiritus mentes tuorum visita, imple superna gratia, quae tu creasti pectora………..”

Kaila looked up in the sky and saw that the clouds that had gathered where turning black….. her heart sank in despair. She was completely frightened once again….it felt as if she was inside hell itself with all of the macabre things going on around her….but to make matters worse…. Lord Death wasn’t done yet.

“Welcome to what I call…. Eien no Hakaba…..the eternal graveyard. The latin translation is much different……but that is for another time…..THIS is where you shall begin your real training to become a full-fledged death hollow worthy of wielding the right hand of fate…….” Lord Death spoke to her from up above.

Before Kaila could say anything, she heard a cracking noise in the ground as 4 separate black crosses burst from the ground up. These crosses held what seemed to be Amuki, Tomomi, Reyabe & Gajenma tied to the crosses.

“In order to fully realize the power of the Zetsu Kaisho reaper claw….you must overcome what you fear …..let go of your inhibitions….and be willing to stand up in the face of danger without the help of the blood moon’s power…….” Lord Death spoke to Kaila.

All of the sudden, the clouds in the sky took the form of dark spirits that were completely black in color. They stormed into the ground and hid amongst the fog, possessing the skeletal corpses like zombies and turning them black with pure Nezā flowing through them. They turned to Kaila and slowly started to walk towards her, surrounding her all at once. Some of them began to walk towards her friends on the cross.

“No…Stay away from me! THIS ISN’T WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR!!!! What is this?!?!” Kaila screamed out in terror.

“This is how you will achieve your true power…..you must overcome your greatest fear……These are black spirits…..the skeletal remains around them are merely vessels for them to command…..if you are able to fight them off……” They started to take the form of Lord Death himself without the monstrous size, and even managed to gain their own scythe weapons made purely out of Nezā.

“Then you can use the Zetsu Kaisho reaper claw without hinderance…..or without help.” Lord Death’s voice began to fade away, as Kaila was left there all by herself to figure out what she needed to do in order to survive such a horrifying training exercise.

Kaila gripped her fist….she could feel it shaking…..she had goosebumps….and she certainly wasn’t sure if she would make it out of this alive…..but one thing’s for sure……

“Ok fine…….I was getting tired of being scared anyway…..no more running. If this is what I have to do…..THEN BRING IT ON!!!!” Kaila used shokanju to make the reaper claw appear in her hands and bring out her own Nezā laced aura. She was indeed terrified of the events transpiring in front of her……..The black zombie spirits are beginning to climb up the crosses to get to her friends…..She was surrounded by black corpses……and she only had her skills as grim reaper to fall back on…….

.: HOLLOWS EVE CHAPTER 21 :.

As the creepy nighttime sky swirled around in the desolate wasteland of death known as the “Eternal Graveyard” or in this case….. Eien No Hakaba, Kaila was thrown into a situation she couldn’t get out of. She had to fight off an ambush of horrifying creatures known as “Black Spirits”.

The black spirits surrounded her, and slowly crept up on her from all angles, forcing her to back away only ever so slightly. She then called the reaper claw to her hand, as she had virtually no choice but to fight them off. She spun her reaper claw around in the air and brought it downwards ready to fight off the undead corpses. “Alright…..I’m in a creepy spiritual graveyard surrounded by black spiritual zombies with no way out and no one to help me free my friends from atop those crosses………I guess this time it’s all on me.” She said to herself as the black spirits drew closer and closer to her.

“If I don’t do this then I’m as good as dead……If not for them……for me. Because I’ll be damned if I die here…..afraid of what could be, or what is. I won’t die here! Let’s do this!!!” Kaila began the training exercise by running at the black spirits with her scythe drawn backwards. “HAAAAAAHH!!!”

The black spirits let out a frightening screech, as they all began to storm her with their scythes drawn as well. One by one they all began their assault, and Kaila met their scythes with strong blade clashes of their own, cleaving through them one at a time. One dived down on her and bashed Kaila on her side, causing her to tumble & roll over. She slid on her hand and feet and then got up to survey the area in front of her.

“What the……..?” Kaila looked up, the black spirits were all in the sky, some were receeding and heading for her friends, who were still stuck on the crosses. “No! Stay away from them!!!!” Kaila ran towards the black spirits, but some of them came down and k******e bombed her, causing explosions of black flames everywhere.

“AAAAHH!!!” Kaila said as she covered herself and jumped back. She made a landing and grimaced at the black spirits coming towards her, racing forward to meet them in combat! She jumped and brought her death scythe down on one of them, cleaving through another with an underhand strike and then spinning around for a roundhouse strike with her blade. She then blocked an incoming hit from another black spirit, who then screeched in Kaila’s face.

“RRHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!” The soulless spirit yelled with a very horrifying, loud raspy tone of voice. Almost like a banshee. Kaila cleaved through the spirit in an instant to get it off of her back with a powerful crescent scythe, but was tackled by another.

“GGGH!! AAGGH!!! GET….OFF ME!!!” Kaila looked over her head to see what the situation was with her friends. The spirits were climbing on the crosses and getting closer, some of which began to grab Reyabe’s & Amuki’s legs. Kaila’s eyes widened in distress she was not about to let anyone touch her dear friends, especially not some soulless spirit zombies!!!

“GET OFF OF ME!!!!!” Kaila yelled out and suddenly an explosion of Nezā happened. It was only a short burst, but she got up and felt the Nezā flow through her entire body….it felt surprisingly powerful. More powerful than her original spiritual aura could ever be. “Wow…..is this…. Nezā?” Kaila proclaimed. She was amazed by the massive power that she held right in her hands. It was dark and decrepit, but powerful and enthralling.

But she didn’t have time to gawk over her newly gained aura, the black spirits came down at her and began to fire large black fireballs from their mouths! Some even swung death scythes and released powerful energy waves of Nezā! “Huh? …WHOA! AGGH!!!” Kaila was almost caught in an explosion, but she jumped back in time to avoid the attacks. The attacks left the ground completely disintegrated, so if she hadn’t dodged the attack…she would’ve been reduced to nothing but ash to put inside of an urn.

Kaila kept jumping backwards and dodging the attacks while running as fast as she could to avoid getting hit. Some of the black spirits swirled around her and in front of her, catching her on both sides. They spewed massive black nether flames from their mouths on both sides of her.

“GGGRRRHH!!! Leave…ME…ALONE!!!” Kaila closed her eyes and re-opened them, gaining her mortis eyes in the process. She could see the spiritual output of the flames being produced. She extended her hands and blocked two giant fireballs that began to squish her as they pushed on her from both sides. As she tried her hardest to push back, Kaila cried out in terror, as she’s had enough…… “ENOUGH!!!....AAAAAAAAAGGGHH!!!!” The flames began to explode on both of her sides, but then also swirled all around her inwardly. Which was strange…..it’s almost as if she was sucking them in!

Smoke subsided all around Kaila, and it seemed that her dress was slightly burned, but other than that she was ok. She absorbed the nether flames brought on by the black spirits!

Kaila was breathing extra heavily upon absorbing such flames…..She didn’t even know that she could do that. “*huff*……*huff*……*huff*…..*huff*…..*huff*…..*huff*…..W….What…..What just……?” Kaila’s hands were on her knees. She doesn’t know what just happened, but she slowly rose from her knees and felt a….hot sensation inside of her spirit.

“Oh my god…..” Kaila gripped her fists and then they radiated with powerful nether flames….black flames that she could now control. “Now we’re talking……Time to kick things up a notch…..” Kaila spread her legs slightly and combined her spiritual aura with the nether flames to create a massive black & orange inferno all around her. Whatever this “training exercise” was doing, it sure was working, as she grew stronger with every fight she engaged the black spirits in.

Kaila stepped forward and ran through several black spirits, burning them away seemingly while running. She then jumped very high into the air and used Shokanju to call the reaper claw to her hands. “HAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!” Kaila divebombed the massive horde of undead spiritual skeletons and caused a near-atomic explosion of nether flames, dispersing the massive mob of undead mortals. She landed HARD on the ground and left a large crater where she landed, and upon further inspection of her friends….they were still in trouble.

One of the black spirits began to climb onto Amuki’s body and even licked her face. With black ectoplasm leaking from its eye sockets and mouth, the black spirit began to devour Amuki completely right in front of Kaila’s eyes.

“GRRRGH!!! Get away from her!!!” Kaila ran forward, but was somehow stopped by a wave of powerful reishi coming right at her, causing her to flip backwards to dodge it.

“Urhm! …What now?....What could possibly….*gasp*” Kaila couldn’t believe what she was seeing……the black spirits were gathering….all together in a massive clusterfuck of black ectoplasm….the black ectoplasm that formed from their gathering took shape…..it turned into a massive skeletal monster with two gigantic scythes in both of its hands! One scythe for each hand!!!

“You’ve got to be kidding me…….?” Kaila blinked and said with a slight tremble in her voice.

“RRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHH!!!!!!” The gigantic doshabokuro monster roared at Kaila so much, it was like it had the auditory strength of the cyclops demon. Its massive roar caused Kaila to fall backwards and crash into a massive tomb.

“AAAGGH!!!” Kaila yelped as she crashed, she was now bleeding from the head down through her neck….. she picked herself up from the tomb and brought her scythe down, breathing heavily as she got up.

“*huff* ….. *huff* …*huff* …. *huff* ….Alright…..that’s enough….you really wanna play like that….? …. FINE! I don’t need to beat this thi- AGH!!!” The doshabokuro grabbed Kaila and squeezed her bones till they popped. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Kaila yelled out in extreme pain, she could feel her bones nearly cracking. Soon she’d become one of them!!!

Kaila was absolutely terrified now, but she couldn’t stop. She looked over at her friends for a split second, as they were all being played with by the black spirits that were still skeletons on the crosses. The skeletons opened their mouths and dripped ectoplasm on all 4 of her friend’s faces, preparing to murder them by eating them alive so that they will all turn into black spirits themselves.

Kaila had a grim look on her face, as she also began to shed tears upon seeing her friends in such a dire situation. “No…NO! STOP! PLEASE DON’T!!! IM BEGGING YOU!!! LEAVE THEM ALONE!!! *gasp* …..” Kaila stopped thinking for a second….as she began to have a very vivid memory….a moment of déjà vu if you will…..she remember back then…….when she was younger….

“No! ….Stop! PLEASE Don’t!!! IM BEGGING YOU!!! LEAVE HIM ALONE!!!!” Kaila remembered looking from beyond the tree of life…..long ago….when she was only a child…..she remembered saying those exact words……she was in such a state of uselessness…..fear…..she was petrified…..she felt as though she could do nothing to protect those she cared for…..she was reminded….of the day her father was murdered.

Kaila’s eyes vibrated…..she could hear heartbeat sounds….as the images of a man getting beat up, shot, and then left there to die right before her eyes came back to haunt her. Her eyes dilated….she felt sweaty….she felt…..the same way she felt before….petrified. As her heartbeat raced and her energy started to spike…… She finally gained enough power and courage to say…..

“NOT….AGAIN……” The doshabokuro closed in on Kaila and its right hand back while holding Kaila with its left thumb closing in on its boney palm. It was about to crush her with its hands…..

As it went in for the killing blow, Kaila brought her hands up and cut off its right arm, causing it to drop her instantly! “RRRRRRAAAAGGH!!!!” The doshabokuro roared out in anger. Black Spirits cannot feel pain, so now it was just angry.

Kaila immediately wasted no time and ran over to her friends as quickly as she could. “REAPER….CLAW!!!!” She sliced up the ground and released a gigantic wave of her own reishi in the form of a horizontal wave, cutting the crosses down and causing the black spirits to topple over.

“*huff* ….*huff* …. *huff* ….. *huff* ….Not again……I won’t feel the same way….not while everything’s at stake…….” Kaila said to herself. She then looked up and saw that the fog was beginning to disperse. She saw a castle that dripped with black ectoplasm on all sides in the distance. It was large, and it had a gigantic skull head helming the entrance…..it looked even creepier and more disturbing than that of the castle of nightmares.

“What….? What is that in the dis-“ Kaila was about to ask what that castle was in the distance, but she was instantly interrupted by the untimely return of the giant doshabokuro that was still after her. “RRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!”

The doshabokuro shook the entire graveyard as Kaila grimaced at its massive, scary visage. It had an overwhelming Nezā aura flowing through it and was dripping from head to toe with ectoplasm. The monster then lifted its arms and caused even more black skeleton spirits to rise from the grave, all of them screeching and yelping at her.

Kaila couldn’t help but feel panic-stricken. She got up and immediately made a run for it, making her way towards the dark castle in the distance covered by the dark ectoplasm. The more she ran, the more black skeletons started to rise. One even grabbed her by the leg upon rising, causing her to fall over. “WHAT IS THIS?!?! SOME KIND OF ZOMBIE MOVIE?!?!? GET OFF!!!” Kaila kicked at it, causing the bones to break. She immediately ran inside the castle’s vicinity, but stopped at the gates.

“*gasp* … Kaila looked back and saw that the horde was coming for her, marching towards her with weapons draw of all types. They all moaned like zombies and some even dragged chains that anchored their souls to the ground, forever trapped in a dark, desolate, decrepit abyss.

Kaila yelped and then turn around to run inside, completely ignoring the fact that she had no idea what was in there anyway. The skull-faced entrance opened its doors for her very slowly, but she jumped inside to avoid getting caught by the horde. Once the doors were fully open, she could still see them coming…..

“C’mon, c’mon! CLOSE!!! CLOSE THE DAMN DOORS!!!” Kaila said closing her eyes and crying terror-stricken tears. She felt like a little girl being stalked by a merciless serial killer, or a regular human in a movie with a massive zombie horde chasing her…..you know that last scenario actually makes more sense.

The hordes of black spirit zombies came closing in on her, but luckily the doors started to come up. They closed just as the horde had reached the front of the entrance, blocking their way inside. Kaila let out a very happy sigh of relief upon escaping them, she knew she couldn’t take on anymore black spirits in her current state. Her arms, legs, shoulders, and just about every other part of her were in massive pain….

“OW!!!....Ggghh…..man that…giant skeleton thing…..Ow….” She felt one of her bones misplace itself. It felt like her right shoulder, so her only option was to crack it back in place. She lifted her left arm and pushed on her shoulder…. “AGGGHHh…GGHAAAHHHH!!!!” You could feel the intense agony she was going through as she pushed with all her might to snap her shoulder back into place. Luckily her suffering wasn’t in vain, as she was successful in fixing it.

Kaila let out a few hard breaths, and then turned around to survey the area. It was nothing but a dark corridor with glimpses of red light shadowing the entire castle. Surprisingly though, the castle itself had a chapel-style interior, so it wasn’t that creepy inside.

Kaila had no choice but to move forward, as she started to walk while holding her right arm in pain. After walking around for a few minutes, she stopped and sat down on the ground completely tired. “*huff* ….*huff* ….*huff* ….I can’t walk anymore……wht kind of lesson is Lord Death trying to teach me?.......Is there something he sees that I don’t see?....More importantly…is it even f*****g worth it to go through all of this torture?!?!?......” Kaila said to herself in her mind …… “I can…..barely move my body……I need to rest….just for a minute…..I can’t……I……” Kaila laid there on the wall while sitting slightly on her bottom. It was a risk, but she could hardly move an inch because she was so tired. She went through one crazy fight, now she has to go through another. It’s no wonder she’s exhausted. So as she began to slip away….her memories started to once again come back to her…..memories of a much happier time in her life. Her childhood…..but as you’ve seen before…..not all happy times end on a happy note.

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The sun was up….it shined down on the town of Kyoto, which was as bustling back then as it is now. The world was alive, and the sakura tree that bloomed in the middle of the park on the way to Nakamuri Junior High was also alive and dripping petals. This would serve an even greater purpose later on….

We begin to see a pair of feet walking up a flight of stairs. This pair of feet also had a bowl of miso soup in his hands and seemed to be approaching what looked like Kaila’s room within the Amiyuki household.

Then, a pair of closed eyes came into view…. *knock knock* “Kaila-chan! It’s time to wake up! Come on Midnight!” Kaila’s eyes opened, and she immediately got up, put on her shoes, dress, and even put bows in her hair. She was depicted as a young girl, roughly around 5-6 years old…..this was a flash back to when she was just a child. *knock knock* “C’mon little midnight! Open the door or else I’ll eat the miso soup myself!” The voice behind the door playfully said. “I’m coming daddy!” Kaila said with a very high-pitched tone of voice. She had very beady yellow eyes and looked a lot younger than she does now.

She ran over quickly once she got dressed to the door and jumped up to open it, grabbing the doorknob and opening the door herself. Behind the door was a man with midnight blue hair just like Kaila’s. He also had yellow eyes and glasses on, this was Kaila’s loving father Kazuyama Amiyuki. A peaceful man, who loved both his daughter and his wife very much.

“How are you this morning little Midnight Bliss?” Kazuyama said with a bright smile on his face as he stooped down low to hand Kaila her miso soup.

“Daddy last night I had a dream about the sakura tree downtown again! The one you showed me from before!” She’s of course talking about the same tree in which her and her friends pass in modern times.

“Oh really?” Kazuyama got back up and walked over to her bed, then sat the bowl of soup down on her dresser drawer. He then patted the bed right next to him. “Why don’t you sit right here and tell daddy all about it hmm?” Kaila did as she was instructed and climbed onto the bed.

“All of the petals were dancing as they fell off of the trees! Somehow they were created from thin air. Can petals dance? *gasp* tell me if the petals can dance with me!!!” Kaila grabbed on her father’s shirt and tugged on it, wanting to hear another riveting story.

“Hahahah! Ok there Midnight, calm down. Eat your miso first, and then we’ll talk about the sakura tree. Today’s your first day of grade school, and me & your mother want to make sure you’re ready for it.” Kazuyama said to the young Kaila.

“Ok.” Kaila said while looking down slightly, somewhat disappointed. “Hey? How about this? I’ll walk you by the giant sakura tree on the way to your new school. We can even pass it by on the way home. Does that sound like a good idea?” Kazuyama said as he dipped a spoon in the miso soup and fed it to Kaila.

“Mhm! That sounds great!” Kaila said, actually smiling a very happy smile. “Kazu! Kaila-chan! Breakfast! Oritekuru!” That was Kaila’s mother Kagura. She had called both of them downstairs so they could eat breakfast before Kauzyama would take Kaila off to school.

“There’s the call to action Midnight. Hurry and finish that miso soup ok?” Kazuyama then kissed his daughter’s forehead and went downstairs to greet his wife. “I don’t like miso soup…..I want dumplings!” Kaila said while pouting, regardless she still began sipping the miso soup anyways.

Meanwhile, Kazuyama had descended from the steps upstairs and came to the kitchen, where his wife, who at the time had longer, black hair than she does in the current generation, was cooking up a storm. She wore a yellow button-up shirt with blue jeans and an apron. Her jeans actually managed to show off her ample posterior very much. She was busy cooking up Tonjiru, or pork miso soup for breakfast, which was Kazu’s favorite.

“Hhmhmhmh…hmhmhmh….” She hummed to herself but yelped all of the sudden as she felt a slight pinch somewhere. “AH! What the?! ….Ohhhh Kazu…hmhmh!” She giggled, as it was just Kazuyama pinching his wife’s bosom. “Good morning my darling. And just what are you cooking up in here?” Kazuyama asked her while wrapping his arms around her waist.

“Oh nothing Kazu, just some pork miso for you. I know how much you like to bulk up on animals. Hahahah!” She playful took a jab at him and his obsession with meat. “Hey! A man needs his protein, get off my back. Hmhmhmh.” He then shared a deep, passionate kiss with his wife before sitting down at the table.

“Did you bring Kaila her miso?” Kagura asked him. “Yes of course, she asked me about the sakura tree in the park again. She seems obsessed with that tree.” Kazu told her as she set some coffee down for him so he could get his caffeine game on.

“Well you pass it all the time when you walk her to school. A big tree like that? She’s going to have some kind of questions about it. Why not teach her about sakura trees?” She exclaims.

Kazu took a sip from his coffee and responded with “You might be right about that. Kaila is a child who’s fascinated with the world around her. But is cultivating such curiousity a good thing for her?” He asked.

“I think it’s a wonderful thing that she’s so curious. It takes away her inhibitions and makes her less afraid. While she is curious about the world around her, she’s not very good with other kids. You know how she was constantly picked on in pre-school for her eyes?” Kagura said while she continued making Kazu’s pork miso soup.

“Yes yes…..I know. This is why we have to let her grounded though. We need to build up the strength insider of her before she’s completely ready to talk to children.” Kazu retorted.

“How is she going to build rapport with children if she can’t even talk to them? She’s always so nervous.” Kagura argued back.

“Well they say personal experience is the best teacher. That’s why whenever something happens, she comes to us.” Kazu said back to her.

“*sigh* I hope this doesn’t lead to social anxiety….as a growing girl I wish only for her to continue to grow. But part of me thinks you are correct, we need to help her grow.” Kagura grasped Kazu’s hands into hers.

“Exactly! That’s why you and I are here. Together, if we play our cards right….our little midnight bliss won’t have to grow up afraid.” He said back to her while looking into her eyes.

“Hmhmhmhm! Oh Kazu…you know she hates that nickname.” Kagura said while giggling to herself.

“You think so? Because I think she enjoys it. Or at least when it’s coming from me. You I’m not so sure of, little miss black cat.” Kazu said, once again exchanging playful banter with his wife.

“OH hush! You love my black hair. You told me it was the reason you asked me to marry you.” She said while facing him with a smile on her face.

“That is true….Our daughter might have my features, but she definitely has your looks. Her hair is a shade of glorious midnight blue. Just like my own.” He said while scratching under her chin softly.

“Oh stop Kazu you’re making me blush….” She said while grabbing her cheeks and actually blushing. While the two of them were busy flirting like teenagers….

“MOM! DAD!” Kaila had come back downstairs. She held up her finished bowl of miso soup in her hands right in front of her mother and father. “I’m done my miso! Can we go visit the Sakura tree before school starts?!” She asked, seeming excited.

Kazu & Kagura blinked and then looked at each other, wondering how she was able to finish her miso soup that quickly. “Uhhh…sure sweetie! Just let daddy finish his Tonjiru and then we can go. Besides it’s almost…..6:45! You’re going to be late for school!” Kazu exclaimed.

Kaila looked down, slightly saddened. “I don’t wanna go to school…..everyone’s just going to …..think I look weird.” Kaila said while looking down at her feet. Kagura then picked up her daughter’s chin and re-assured her. “Honey….what have I always told you? Your midnight blue hair and yellow eyes are special. You’re as beautiful as the midnight sky. That’s why we call you “Midnight Bliss”.” Kagura reassured her daughter.

Kaila smiled as Kagura kissed her daughter’s cheek. “Now go upstairs and get ready. We’ll be leaving soon.” Kazu told his daughter. “Alright daddy! But seriously, can’t we stop by the sakura tree first on the way there?! PLEASE?!” Kaila pressured her dad into giving her what she wanted.

“Alright alright! We can stop by the tree on the way there. Now please, go upstairs and get ready.” Kazu asked his daughter.

“YEAH!” Kaila immediately ran upstairs and got ready as fast as she could. “I told you, she’s obsessed with that tree.” Kagura chuckled.

“One of these days I’m going to have to pick a bouquet from that huge hunk of wood.” Kazu said, as he took one last sip of his coffee and finally finished his pork miso soup, preparing to take Kaila out to school.

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As the morning sun continued to shine down on the Amiyuki residence, Kaila & Kazu’s morning was only in its beginning phase. “Bye bye Kaila! Be a good girl in school now! And do as your father tells you!” Kagura told her daughter as she waved goodbye to her. Kaila was only a little ways away from the gate that boarded the path to their front door. Kazu went back to kiss his wife goodbye and then took off with Kaila, holding her hand while leading her all the way to school.

They didn’t live far from her new school known as Nakamura elementary, infact they lived so close she could practically walk there herself. But on the way there, the two of them would often pass through a local park near the northern side of downtown Kyoto. There in this small park, on the far right side, lied a huge, blooming tree full of falling white sakura petals.

Kaila and Kazu stopped to admire the tree and all of its beauty… “Wow….it’s so pretty.” Kaila was on Kazu’s shoulders, as he was giving her a piggy back ride. “You know…this variety of Cherry Blossoms is called “Takesimensis”. They change from pink to white to signify the transition into spring. White represents innocence, peace, and tranquility.” Kazu told his daughter.

“Dad you know what would be fun? Having a picnic underneath this tree! I see other kids having ones underneath this tree all the time! Why can’t we have one?” Kaila looked down at her father and said.

“Now that sounds like a plan. It’s actually tradition to have picnics underneath sakura trees like this. And if we don’t follow tradition….then we’re not Japanese. We’re aliens.” Kazu jokingly said to his daughter.

“*gasp* WE’RE ALIENS?!?! ARE WE FROM ANOTHER PLANET?!?!” Kaila said while white circles of paranoia filled her eyes.

“Hmhmhmh! I’m only kidding Kaila-chan, we’re not aliens. It’s just that we never got around to having one. I promise later on during the week, we’ll all get together as a family and have a picnic under this tree. We’ll even light paper lanterns and have a good old fashioned Yozakura. How’s that sound?” Kazu re-assured Kaila with a bright and welcoming smile. The same kind of smile that Tomomi often gave her….she got the same kind of warmth long ago from her father.

“Thank you! Hehehehe!” Kaila hugged her father’s neck, she felt so incredibly happy she couldn’t contain it. “Alright, now it’s time to go off to school. Come on. Let’s go!” Kazu said with Kaila groaning about having to leave the beautiful sakura tree. She looked back as Kazu carried her away from the tree….feeling like she missed it already.

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Later on, Kaila & Kazu arrived at Kaila’s new school and checked Kaila in. They opened the doors and Kazu dropped her off with the other kids. Once he was about to leave, he stooped down to her and tousled her hair while also grasping her cheek. “Now be a good girl Kaila. And don’t worry about the other children, remember what mommy said? Right?” Kazu reassured his daughter of her beauty.

“I…am beautiful! Like the midnight sky!” Kaila said to him, smiling.

“That’s right.” He then cuddled his daughter and said his goodbyes, leaving her at the school to begin learning. Kaila’s smile faded away as soon as he left, as she gulped with a nervous beat of sweat dripping down her head. She was still afraid to talk to others, as the only person she felt like wouldn’t really judge her for her appearance is her mother & father. But regardless, she went inside the school and began her day…..

While skipping the boring parts, where she actually learns things, Kaila was outside playing with the other kids during recess on a traditional Japanese playground for kids. They were all running around and swinging, climbing, sliding, the usual playground stuff. Kaila swung her feet while sitting alone at a bench, rather nervous to go and talk to other kids. Part of her acknowledged her parent’s words, but another part didn’t really believe it. And pretty soon it would become apparent as to why….

“Hey!” One of the kids yelled out loud to get her attention, which startled her almost immediately. “AH! Hey! Don’t scare me like that!” Kaila said while gripping her fists upset.

“Heheheh, well then wake up next time midnight freak. Hahahahaha!” One of the boys, who’s hair was navy blue and spiked out called out to Kaila. “You looked like you were dozing off. So I woke you up! The sun needs to come up in your life, because you only bring about the night! HAHAHAH!” The kid chortled as if he made a zinger of a joke.

His friends seemed to agree with him as they all walked away from her giving each other high-fives and whatnot. Kaila looked down, this confirmed what she was going through….. “Daddy says I’m beautiful……maybe I should…..” Kaila began to think that maybe if she got up….she’d be able to prove to everyone that she wasn’t a freak because she had beady yellow eyes.

So she did, and she approached the slide, which was a very large slide that almost replicated that of a big waterslide from a theme park. There was a bit of a long line, so she had to wait. But a kid in front of her shoved her backwards and got In front of her. “Hey! I was waiting in line first!” Kaila said to the kid.

“Who cares? Why don’t you go look at the moon cheesy eyes.” The kid said with such hurtful words…. Kaila looked down again, feeling weak. It was as if she couldn’t really do anything about it. So when she finally got her turn, she slowly approached the top of the slide and looked outwards. She was somewhat disoriented, as she didn’t really like heights. “Ohhhh…Oh my…..” She blinked twice and said with a slight wobble in her voice.

“Hey come on daddy’s girl!!! Let’s go! Get down the slide!” One of the kids yelled.

“I’m going!” Kaila said. Kaila then got to the top, and stood up….she took a deep breath and was slightly scared upon going up the big slide….but she wanted to prove to everyone, including herself, that she wasn’t scared. Little did she know one of the kids was climbing up the ladder of the big slide…..

He then pushed her, causing her to fall over on her stomach and down the slide. “WHOA! AAAAAAH!!!” *OOF!* She hit the ground face first, falling right into a pile of tree flowers.

The kids slid down and continued taking their turns, and no one offered to help her up. “Heh…Took you too long to come down moonface!” The kids coming down the slide started laughing at her….Kaila even cried upon landing, because she had received a bit of a bruise on her way down. “MMmmhmm….Hmmhmhmh…..mhhggm…” Her lip quivered as she started bawling like a baby…. “EEEEAAAAAAHHHHHHH-“

“*gasp* AAAAAGH!!!!” Snap back to reality, Kaila, the grown, 16 year old Kaila was still trapped in the dark ectoplasm castle inside Eien no Hakaba. She had awoken from her little rest surprisingly unscathed. She leaned up and held her right arm, which was still in pain. “That’s it……I have to find this so called “Lord Death” …..and tell him I’ve had it with this….he’s going to have to find someone else to be the grim reaper….im getting the hell out of here. But first…….I have to find another way out.” Kaila said, as she got up and then started to hear banging noises coming from the doors.

The black skeleton horde was still there, trying to break open the door by pounding it with their weapons. Kaila immediately made a run for it the other way and strolled through the halls of the dark castle she was in…..But she failed to realize….that little traces of black ectoplasm had seeped through the cracks……it seemed like the chase was just beginning.

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After roaming around for what seemed like hours, Kaila began to walk a little slower. She used her left arm to keep her walking upright while continuing to walk forward, taking deep breaths every two or three steps. “Damn…..I wish my joints weren’t killing me right now….This is bullshit….what kind of father puts his daughter through pain like this?! I feel like training with Jack is a breeze compared to this s**t! …ugh……” Kaila stopped for a moment…….and then uttered the singular word….. “Daddy……”

Another flashback began to surface, as the sun began to set on Nakamura elementary. Kaila was sitting on a bench in her usual spot, waiting for Kazuyama to come and pick her up. Kazuyama then approached his daughter… “Hey Kaila-chan ready to- ….” He ran up to his daughter’s side and noticed the bruise on her arm. “Kaila what happened?! Where did this bruise come from?” Kazuyama asked his daughter, extremely concerned. “I….I fell.” Kaila told her father sheepishly.

“You fell? Honey, tell me what happened completely?” Kazu demanded. “I….I fell down the slide…..the kids pushed me….” Kaila began to cry, as her father offered her comfort by hugging her and holding her close. “It’s alright…..daddy’s here now. C’mon we’d better get you home. We have to clean up that bruise, otherwise it’s going to fester.” Kaila then got off of her perch and took Kazuyama’s hand, as the two of them began to walk all the way home.

Later on that night……Kazuyama, Kagura and Kaila were on top of the roof of their home, looking out into the stars. This is something they liked doing as a family, so it wasn’t just a pastime that she enjoyed only with Tomomi. It was something she liked doing ever since she was young…

“Tell me again mom….what do the stars say?” Kaila asked as she was cuddled inbetween Kagura’s legs and arms. Kagura pointed outwards towards the stars. “They tell stories Kaila-chan….” Kagura told her daughter.

“Yes, like that one, Cetus. Cetus is a sea monster who tried to eat an entire city. He also gobbled up queen Cassiopea, nearly killed Andromeda, daughter of Cassiopeia and Cepheus, but is itself killed by the hero Perseus. Perseus is the son of the god of the seas, Posideon.” Kazu continued on from where Kagura left off. Kaila felt a little frightened by the thought of a giant sea monster.

“A-a-a sea monster?!” Kaila exclaimed.

“Maybe that wasn’t the right story to tell darling.” Kagur told her husband.

“Oh my…apologies. But it’s true, you could learn a lot from the stars.” Kazu said.

“The stories are fun….but I just like how the moon and the sky and the stars blend together…..like a lovely painting…..it’s all so pretty.” Kaila was starstruck…literally, by the stars in the sky. She always loved watching them.

“Hang on, I must go take care of “business” in the little mother’s room.” Kagura kissed her husband’s cheek and tousled Kaila’s hair. “I’ll be right back you two.” She then left and went on down through the port in the roof to Kaila’s room and then the bathroom.

As Kaila & Kazuyama continued watching the stars…. Kaila asked her father… “Daddy?”

“Hmm?”

“What do you see in the stars? Besides the constellations?” Kaila innocently asked her father.

“What do I see? …..Well I see a bunch of creatures. There’s all kinds of things in the sky Kaila-chan….but these creatures are beautiful. And you know what’s even more beautiful?” Kazuyama said.

“What?”

“They watch over us as well.” He said to her. “But they don’t mean to harm us, they’ve learned their lessons from before. The stars seek to protect us. Looking down from above and watching the earth during the night. That’s why the night is such a beautiful time to be celebrated. That’s why we have the midnight lotus festival.” Kazuyama said.

“We celebrate the stars?” Kaila questioned.

“Well sort of. We more or less celebrate the great godly spirits that watch from amongst the stars, the spirits that watch over and protect us from above.” He said back to her.

“Oh…Wow….they protect us?” Kaila once again questioned.

“Yes darling.” Kazuyama said with a slight chuckle in his voice. “They protect us, and would not let anything happen to any of us, including you and me.” Kazuyama said, as he put his hand on his daughter’s cheek and held her head close to his side. Kaila smiled as she looked out into the stars with her father.

“Kaila….I want you to do something for me.” Kazuyama said to his daughter.

Kaila looked up at her father and said “Oh…sure dad what is it?” She asked him.

“You know I would never let anything happen to you right?” Kazuyama said.

“Of course!” Kaila said back to her father.

“And the spirits up above would never let anything happen to you either. They give us strength to protect each other…..and I know you don’t exactly think so…but you are strong, strong like the night. I want you to think about that and hopefully…..it’ll give you the strength to protect others as well. Don’t ever let anything happen to anyone you care about when you grow old too. Ok?” He said while looking at her.

Kaila blinked twice….and finally responded with a very sharp “Ok!” As the two of them continued looking out towards the stars, Kaila took those words straight to heart, as she now had a new incentive….a new form of strength. All of it came from her father, the one she loved the most, the one before another…that gave her all the strength she needed.

.: TO BE CONTINUED :.