(Since this story has finally hit 15k reads, I thought I'd do something a little more special and give some sort of background behind Hanamura Hanae, Shiori's mother. Extra chapters don't usually have anything to do with the original storyline, but I thought I would just write about this to give some background information. I plan on including how she first discovered the Nakanishi clan up to when Shiori was born. Or so I plan to, you'll have to find that out. This story begins way before Shiori's birth. In some ways, Hanae plays a very important part in the story. Thank you so much for supporting this story. I'm very thankful. I hope you can stay with me until the very end of this book. Until then, enjoy! Oh and also, since this background is kind of long, this 15k special is part 1. 20k special will be the continuation of it, otherwise known as pt.2 of Hanae's story.) 

This world has come a long way. In the end, that sacrifice was made. However, was it worth it ?

As the spring rain slowly made its way through the afternoon, I watched as the gray clouds loomed over the house without a care in the world. Today was the day that I was supposed to go to that Omiai, but it seemed impossible now. The rain was pouring and it didn't seem as thought it was going to go away any time soon. In some ways, it was a relief to me. I didn't like the idea of an arranged marriage. Especially when it was for nothing more than status. This Omiai was brought up after I caught the attention of a wealthy man. It was by chance. I had no recollection of ever seeing him before. His attendant approached my aunt and asked about me. The rest went from there. After it was brought to my attention that my aunt and uncle were planning to give me away for money, this gentleman would occasionally send me gifts to woo my heart. It didn't work. My aunt noticed it right away.

Soon, a feeling of distrust and doubt loomed over me as I started to lose hope in people. When my aunt realized that I was going to refuse the Omiai, my world was suddenly shadowed by corruption. Soon, there was nothing more than threats. It was clear that they would not take "no" for an answer. Even my own cousin, whom I had trusted so much, turned away from me. Words that cut deeper than an existing knife. Tears which hid behind a feign smile.

"You ungrateful child! Is this how you repay us after all these years !?"

It always crossed my mind. A question that I had asked myself when I locked myself away. When genuinely loved, was it necessarily to repay with something that required money? Love did not require money. Money never required love. I didn't understand. The relatives who had taken me in three years after the death of my very own parents had disappeared. In their place, a family who vied for nothing more than money. What more could I do in a situation like this? To their dismay, I inherited a mischievous side from my deceased parents. It was the only thing I had left. The choice was all mine. To live a miserable life or to live the life I chose. I took that chance I had and ran away from that life. Of course, there were sacrifices that I was willing to take. In order to avoid capture, I cut the hair that I had tended to for so long. It was no longer waist long but shoulder length. I gave myself a messy fringe. I exchanged my extravagant kimonos for a workers kimono. The only thing that I took with me was my allowance and an old hair piece that my parents had given to me for my 15th birthday. After that, I was on my own.

A few days passed and I found myself in a new place. I never really intended to stay around when I first arrived. However it seemed like fate had something in store for me. While I was looking for a place to stay for the night, I was attacked by a monster. It was a demon, something that I had been warned about before. For the first time in my life, I thought that I was really going to die. But I didn't. That night, I was saved by someone who was wearing a type of crest on his clothes. As he took it down without a second thought, I watch him feeling intrigued yet shaken up. I must have passed out because when I awoke, I was in another place. A slight rush of concern overcame me as I glanced around. I was uneasy. In order to distract myself, I thought about what had happened the night before. That was when I noticed a familiar crest in the room. It was engraved in the window frame as a type of design. I slowly got up from the futon and walked over to the window. They were closed so I slid them open to see that it was raining. It was hard to tell how many days had gone by since the attack. I sighed and turned to the door. The last thing I wanted was trouble. I returned to the futon and took a seat.

While I was watching the rain fall, I heard a faint click from the door. As I heard the door slide open, I slowly turned my head to see two people standing there. When they noticed me looking at them, they greeted me with a smile. To my surprise, they were genuine. One of them was holding a tray of food and the other seemed to be there for another reason. Questioning, I presume. The one who approached me first was the girl holding a tray of food. As she set it down in front of me, I glanced over what they were going to give me. 

"I apologize for the long wait", she kindly said to me, "You must be hungry." I sheepishly smiled at her. "Thank you", I quietly muttered. "And I.. apologize for making you bring me this." "There's no need to apologize", the boy replied with a grin. "We wouldn't have brought this to you if we didn't worry about you." I hesitated. "This place...", I said as I glanced around the room, "..If I may ask, where is this?" They both looked at each other. "Before we reveal that", the girl said, "Could we ask you a few questions ?" It was just as I had expected. Doubt lingered in the air around us. "I presume that you must be wondering about what I saw the night before ?", I asked with a slight smile. They both nodded their heads. "Could you tell us what you were doing that night ?", the boy asked with a stern expression. "Why were you alone ?", the girl added. As they waited for my response, it occurred to me how important my answers would be to them. I had nothing to hide from them. However I had no intention of dying either. "I won't lie to you", I said to them after a while. "What I tell you will be exactly what I observed. There is no reason for me to hide anything." They seemed content with my response. "Well then?", the boy asked.

"I am not sure if you have noticed, but I am not of this place", I began to say as raised my arm out in front of me and tugged on the sleeve of my slightly torn up kimono. "In some ways, you may call me someone who wanders from place to place in search of a job. I arrived to this place yesterday evening. I was merely trying to find a place to stay for the night when I was suddenly attacked by a demon. I thought I was going to die. However, before such thing could occur I was saved by a boy who was wearing the crest that is engraved in the window. It must have been too much for me. I assume I passed out and when I awoke, I was here." 

The room was silent for a while. I wondered what my story would lead to. "It's just as he said", I heard the girl say to her companion. "She seems to know about them." Them? Eventually, they turned their attention back to me. "Thank you for keeping your word", the girl said with a smile. "We are currently in the main household of the Nakanishi Clan. It doesn't matter if you know who that is or not, but we hope you enjoy your stay here." "When you've recovered", the boy said, "We have a small request. It appears that we have a few things to speak about." The only thing I could do was slowly nod my head. "I.. see.." "That reminds me", the girl said before they both left the room. "What is your name?" "Hanami", I shyly replied. "Hanami hmm?", the girl chuckled. "Well Hanami, my name is Ayano. And this guy over here is named Naoki." "It's.. nice to meet you", I mumbled. "It's nice to meet you as well", Naoki replied with a grin. "Uhn." Eventually, Ayano and Naoki left me. As I went back to watching the rain, I was left with a feeling of guilt. In order to protect myself from the life that I had run away from, I couldn't tell them my real name. That was the only lie I would give them. Or so I promised myself. 

~~~~~

When they mentioned a request, I was expecting them to explain it to me. However it turns out that the only thing they would mention was that it had something to do with the demon that attacked me. When I had mentioned it to them, they looked surprised. Should I have not have mentioned it at all? A few days passed by and I was eventually escorted to another place by Ayano and Naoki. The household reminded me of the home I left behind, yet it was much larger and more extravagant. It was something I had noticed during my short stay. I assumed that the Nakanishi name held quite a lot of power. It made me uneasy.

A few minutes passed by and I soon found myself being questioned again. However this time, the questioning was going on around someone who was hidden behind a screen. From where I stood, I could only see one figure. As I repeated my story, I began to think about how I would leave this place without getting caught. Those thoughts were quickly shut away when he appeared. From behind the screen, he revealed himself. It was the boy from before. As he stood before me, I could feel tension. No.. it was his presence. Strong.. absolute.. sincere..

"It's nice to see you again", he said with a nonchalantly expression. I didn't feel welcome, yet there was something feigned about that feeling. It was his greeting. When I encountered him that night, life vividly reflected in his eyes. Today, as he stands before me, I see something being oppressed. I didn't say anything. The questions were all focused on how I knew about the existence of demons. They were suspicious of me. In truth, the only thing I really knew about them was that they lived among the humans. And like humans, there existed good and bad ones. From the stories that my parents had once told me, not all of them were the same.

"The Nakanishi Clan is a family of hunters", I was told shortly after the questioning. "We live to erase those who are not meant for this world. In this case, we aim to remove the existence of demons." It seemed so wrong. To a place of hunters.. was it natural to think that they were all the same? I had no say in such matter. "How do you know about the existence of demons? It's quite unusual for a mere worker like you to believe in their existence. Usually, you would refer to them as monsters." "As a child, I was told stories about them", I replied. I didn't hesitate. I had a feeling that if I did, it would get me into trouble. "In some ways, I guess you can say that I came to believe them because of that." "Perhaps that's what peasants are told nowadays hmm?", a woman, who was sitting on the sidelines said out loud. Ayano and Naoki stood to the side, observing. I assumed that the lady was an aide. If only she knew how much a peasant was worth. In cases like this, I believed they held more worth than her own existence. 

"Now, now", the boy said to her with a visible scowl, "I advise you refrain from speaking that way. She is a guest." The woman looked my way and slightly smirked. "I apologize", she replied. There was no meaning behind her words. Yet, what could I do? I could only wonder.