Tuesday, 18th of July

1 week in captivity

[y/n]'s head shot up, pieces of her breakfast crumbling from her face. "What!?"

But no one was really minding the girl's expression of concussion. The members who just announced to dismiss themselves started to rise from their chairs, turning their backs on her as they drew back towards the corridor.

"No, wait!" The captive hastily jumped from her seat, almost entangling her own legs. She paced after the three males, targeting the tall blond in the middle. But before she had come anywhere near Katsuro's radius, a hand grabbed her by the collar and pulled her backwards. Isamu glowered down at her, having her in his grasp. Don't. you. Dare. was the clear message daggering from his orbs. [y/n] huffed. "Then, at least leave me Yasu here!" She shouted, her bold request holding the hope of the slender boy's protection, remembering how he managed to keep the flamehead off her more than once. But just as the name sounded from her mouth, the strange incident from last night flashed through her mind; likewise, the perception of her flightiness kicked in. Immediately, she pressed her lips shut. Yet her sudden outburst had not only caught the stunned bluehead's attention, it also caused the leader to finally look at her.

"Oh?" Katsuro, without doing so much as glancing over his shoulder with an interested smirk, raised one eyebrow. "How comes you suddenly want a particular one of us around you?" Sarcastic glee resonated in his teasing voice. "However, request dismissed". And with the waving of his hand, he also waved the matter of, proceeding his way further down the hallway.

"And you, you go in there" Isamu began to shove her towards the heavy iron door. In the last split of a second before her field of vision was pulled to the side, she saw Katsuro turning the corner to the office.

"You've just let me out!" The captive complained, attempting to point out the mere fifteen minutes of separation from the cell, as the tall man tried to push the struggling girl into the narrow quarters. And to her wonderment, the ravenhead did not just lock her in- He slipped with her through the entrance, letting the barrier fall shut behind the both of them.

[y/n] swallowed the pent up air in her throat. It took some seconds before her eyes adjusted to the tenuous illumination, and in this moment of blindness she felt like a mouse trapped in a cage with a lion. Unfortunately, the sensation did not vanish even when she saw the intruder clearly again.

And Isamu was surprisingly close.

With a suppressed shriek, she immediately took a wide step backwards, clumsily setting her feet and eventually landing on her lower half. She peered up at the tall male. With a stressed exhale he took same paces closer to the anxious female. She responded to the minimizing distances with carefully shuffling backwards. Eventually reaching the end of the parochial cubicle, she pressed her back against the mural. Isamu, with a stern yet unreadable expression, crouched down in front of her.

Is this how I am going to die? [y/n] pressed her lids shut, sending her last prayers to the sky and waited for whatever kind of action would fulfill her brutal imagination.

"Are you stupid? Open your eyes"

The perplexed girl unintentionally did as told. He still sat in front of her in the same position, making no move that would reveal any kind of intention to attack- yet. Quite the opposite: He obviously felt galled by the captive's overhasty and weird behavior, furrowing his brows.

He took in a deep breath, shortly straying his focus to the ground before looking back at her. "If those two idiots misbehave- and I can't say whom of them both you should be more cautious about- You will tell me. Understood?"

[y/n] peered at him. She was barely able to process the man's sudden and unforeseen offer, or warning, or order, or however she was supposed to comprehend it.

"I asked if you understood me, stupid girl" The ravenhead repeated, this time louder and harsher.

She quickly nodded. With another heavy sigh, Isamu eventually straightened himself again. "The same goes to you. If you dare to try anything, don't expect mercy" The male turned on his heels and walked to the exit. But before his knuckles could hit the surface as a sing for his partners to let him out, the female's voice interfered with his leave.

"...Mercy?" Her vocals were sober, firm, yet a clear undertone of irony swung by. "You are keeping me trapped in this dirty place, at an unknown location, without letting me know where I am, why I am here- and if I even have a chance to make it out of here alive. What damn kind of mercy are you talking about?"

Isamu lowered his fist. Slowly, he began to turn around. As he made visual contact with the captive, tears shimmered in the corner of her [e/c] orbs.

"Do you know what happened the night before last?" She looked the man straight in the face. Her voice was still as hard and cold as ice. "That night I've almost got killed. And by now, I start to doubt that it happened on Katsuro's orders"

Narrowing his eyes was the only change of expression the man gave away. He now fully faced her. His attention inflamed the captive to proceed: "What kind of stupid psychic torment is this? What do you even want from me!?" she yelled. With every word, her vocals grew in might, volume and vexation. Isamu silently watched the female's up building outburst. His passiveness only aggravated her more while each irritating and irrational incident, each connection of events she was not able to find sense behind, each moment with the household's members that forced her to rethink her pictures of the individuals, drove her closer to a dark and endless abyss in her mind. Dread and furiousness mixed into her sentences, together with a growing determination. "I will never stop fighting against you people. I will never stop trying to get out of here."

The man eyed the captive that gazed at him with such a wild glow, such a combative glimmer in the [e/c] of her eyes. In this moment, he found a rather peculiar kind of aesthetic in the [h/c] female's pugnacious semblance. Something tugged inside of his chest and eventually, a smile sneaked on his lips. "I am looking forward to workin' with you"

"[y/n] pleeeeaassee... Come out now..."

Shiro whined in front of the metal door, still unsuccessful in convincing the kidnapped individual in joining his side of the living area. Behind the barrier, the said female contentedly grinned at the blocked handle. After the previous encounter with one of the members, she had grown even more despising of the idea to make closer contact with the males. Resolved to turn the tables, a certain old construct hit on an idea in her to change her personal cage into an island of refuge. What was once supposed to resemble a book shelve, without any books, was ripped apart by the captive's first thereness in the cell in order to protect herself against the very same boy who now stood on the outside. One of the forgotten laths emerged to be long enough to be stably shoved between the handle and the floor, and with the help of physic's laws the door remained shut.

[y/n] was aware of the ephemerality of her solution. At the latest when her bladder alerted her or when she ran out of the dark red apples she still hadn't touched- sooner or later she would be forced to eventually leave her newly claimed territory.

Abruptly, the captive almost lost balance as a heavy thunder echoed through the room.

"You damn brat, get out here!!" Akito yelled, slamming his fist against the iron barrier. Each collision shot vibrations through ground and walls, letting the female jerk just as much as the protective system did. With increasing mistrust [y/n] watched the wood wiggle underneath the force, slowly moving out of its place.

"I swear, if you don't come out now, I will come in!"

She did not even doubt the flamhead's announcement, especially when the batten glided farther and farther out of its spot. With now rising panic, she desperately looked for a way to support the wood in its stance. But just as she made a move forward, the construction glided out of her grasp- And the door flung open.

A dart of red and orange hues burst in, giving her no chance to initialize her defense. [y/n] let out a scream as she suddenly lost connection to the ground. Being swept off her feet, she gaped completely overwhelmed at how the boy threw her over his shoulders. "Let me down, you d***head!" She shouted as the male took his leave, exiting the cell and starting his journey. Shiro could do nothing but watch the frantic and squirming girl trying to wiggle her way out of the redhead's claws, but the member still did not falter the slightest even as fists were hammered against his back.

Akito proceeded his way down the corridor. The once again abducted individual still made no progress in freeing herself. In her futile fight for regaining the charge of her body she paid no attention to her continuous change of location. Eventually, the male reached his destination and sweepingly tossed the human burden to the ground.

[y/n] landed with her back on the halfway soft surface. The sudden impact and latitude let her regain her blinded senses. Recognizing the ground's strange material as gym mats, she brought her body in an upright posture to regard the new surroundings. Turning out to be located in the basement's arsenal, she abruptly jumped on her feet as the vicinity reminded her of the last events taking place in the hall. Her eyes immediately searched for the redhead.

Akito stood a few meters away, slightly bouncing up and down on the spot while turning his neck and moving his shoulders in circular motions. Eventually stretching his entangled fingers with an announcing crack, he had finished his warm- up resembling routine. He now gazed at the female in expectation.

"I won't wait for you" was how he warned her as she still stayed paralyzed on her spot, overextension and anxiety traversing her features. And with those words, he darted forward.

[y/n]'s trained body immediately got in position, ready to either move away or catch the impact. But her attacker had such speed; there was not time to gain space. The momentum wiped their colliding forms of the ground. Even before they crashed down, a fight for dominance broke out, the two individuals now struggling for the upper hand. The girl had the advantages of shock on her side, such as a high dose of adrenaline released in her blood to sharpen her senses and increase her physical abilities. The boy caught her arms, but she swung her leg around his hips, turning him around and now being on top of him. Attempting to dart away and obtain some distance, her ankle was grabbed, coarsely sending her down again. The redhead, with a wild fire burning in his same colored hues, made a spring at her. The combat went on with calculated and sudden motions, tactical and hazardous moves, scratches and alternate utterances of ache or temporal victory. Until the male caught her in a position she found no option to flee from.

"Ugh..." The restrained female let out a groan of frustration and pain. Akito held her down with his weight, pressing her head against the mats while crossing her arms on her backside. With her one eye, she furiously glanced up at him. A triumphant smirk crossed his visage. The hell's fires themselves seemed to burn in his defiantly sparkling orbs. His flame- like hair was ruffled and messed up, standing to all sides. Sweat shimmered on his skin, but far not enough to claim his condition as exhausted. Only then, [y/n] noticed a gleaming object dangling in her sight. A small item of metal hang from the male's upper half, something the girl had never noticed before. At closer inspection, it turned out to be a piece of silver jewelry in an elegant oblongness, connected by a thin chain closing around his neck. The light was reflected by a bright, red stone, wearing the same hue of its owner's eyes. The trinket disappeared from her view as Akito suddenly leaned in. "That was way better than the last time" he commented, in a surprisingly calm voice. She clenched her teeth, regarding their proximity.

As soon as the boy released her form, the captive jumped on her feet again. But to her wonderment, her attacker did not pay any attention to her anymore, when he nonchalantly strived through the hall towards the several lockers lined up the walls. She lowered her tensed fists and warily eyed him opening one of the boxes. When he turned around to her, he held a longish tool in his hand. [y/n]'s muscles rapidly twitched as she recognized the shimmering item's form as a knife, a combat knife to be exact. But only a few seconds later her shoulders lowered again. Paying attention to the unusual way it reflected, she figured its material out to rather be wood than metal, common for nothing but a simple training utensil. But by the smooth way the male flipped it up and down, casually catching it by the holder without even looking at it, she sensed a notion that any object should not be underestimated in this certain individual's hands.

"You're tactic is not that f***ed up, but you have no sense for your opponent's strength." He used the weapon to point at her. "What if I'm three heads bigger than you. Or twice as muscular. Or what if I have a knife. Would you still attack me the way you just did?"

While Akito slowly made his way back to the centre, [y/n] recalled her previous approaching- strategies in combat situations. Whenever a weapon got involved, the fights immediately switched to another level of severity. She did not consider herself to be the type to wait for the opponent's next move- The quickest endings of physical arguments had always been the most pleasant ones to her. But as soon as knives or other things were drawn, she would mostly...

"Retreat." Instantly, she calculated a route between her and the exit.

Her adversary, now standing a few meters in front of her, gave a light nod. "Seems like you're not always as stupid as you appear to be"

"...Thanks?"

"But you don't always have the possibility to do so"

With the entering of the boy's words in her recognition, a situation that just perfectly fitted to his assertion took her back in time. The hall around her blurred away into dark shades of gray, black and brown, until the hazy lines formed the picture of a desolated alleyway. [y/n] sensed the fence pricking her back, the metallic sound as she pressed herself against it. The now way broader, older and more muscular man in front of her duplicated. All of a sudden, she was cornered by several opponents, her knife far away from her reach, her being swaying in the air, and just as all lights threatened to extinguish, a cyan head appeared in the distance-

"Brat? Are you even listening?"

"Huh?" Akito's angered voice threw the female back to the present. She had to blink repeatedly before she was able to sort herself in the right scenery.

"Hell, you are trembling as f***. Are you that afraid?"

She glanced down at her hands and to her wonderment, he was actually right with saying that her form was shaking like a leaf in the wind.

"No, of course not" With rubbing her palms against her shorts, she tried to wipe the sensation off. She was stunned that, even after spacing out, the male had not come any closer, not to mention using her seconds of mental absence to attack her. "Whatever. What kind of stupid fight is this even supposed to be? Do you want me to run away now?"

"You call my training lessons stupid?"

"I- Wait. Your what!?"

[y/n] gaped at him with a frown, not sure if she had understood the boy correctly.

"You... call this a training?" Even without his affirmation, she sensed some relief washing over her tensed being just by the mere thought of his downplaying's truth. "You... You are not actually trying to kill me?" With the words spoken out aloud, she realized the ludicrousness of her question.

You are being naïve again. Of course he is trying to kill you.

"Do you have any f***ing idea of what's gonna happen to me if I harm you?" Akito snorted. "You are Katsuro's new toy, baby. I am not that suicidal"

"...Training."

The red haired individual arched a brow, annoyed by the female's lack of ability to finally grasp the circumstances. He raised the other brow as well as a light chuckle suddenly hovered through the air. [y/n] held her stomach as she laughed.

He was not sure if he could take the joy displayed on her features serious or not. "Are you mocking me?"

"Oh, I would never dare to do so" Her smile only widened.

The redhead twisted his mouth at the captive's behavior. An irritating feeling crawled through his chest as he watched her. His next planned move was actually to charge at her for making fun of him- But something about the bright emotion kept him from interfering.

And in the next second, all the ease on her face disappeared.

"A whole year!"

"You have two months."

"The trade will take place in two months."

The male watched the colors vanishing from the girl's visage. Like pushing a light switch, someone seemed to had shut off the energy in her system. "Brat...? You look like you're about to pass out."

With the alerted tone in his vocals, the female seemed to become aware of her appearance. She weakly shook her head. "No, nothing. I am fine. I just have one more question..."

His silentness indicated her to continue.

"That night at the bathroom... Was that 'training' as well?"

Akito did not appear to be taken aback by her question. He kept a stone cold face. The shortage of denial alone urged the captive to take some steps back, her feet automatically coordinating her towards the door.

"Baby, please" He eventually spoke up, the sarcasm dripping from his lips while he watched her carefully approaching the exit. "Don't forget where you are"

With that being said, [y/n] left the hall.

"Oh [y/n], I was just about to look after you"

The girl was on her way to the bathroom, aiming to cool her visage with fresh water and enjoy some minutes of solitude. However, her plans were interrupted by a pale boy heading towards her presence. She sensed the ache in her head aggravating with any step he got closer. Eventually, Shiro towered in front of her, swaying from his heels to his toes and flashing her a bright smile. "I actually felt bad about leaving you alone with Akito..." he continued; now nervously scratching the back of his head. "But you see, I don't really know if I could just stand there and watch him doing those things to you..."

She grimaced at the way he put the matter into words, not sure what "kind of things" the male was referring to or had in mind. He appeared to have noticed her confusion.

"Oh you know, the fighting stuff. I am not really into that. Akito tends to mash up training and reality. That's what makes him dangerous, but on the other hand, his direct and cold approach is what makes him a good teacher. I don't really enjoy practicing with him though. That dude just can't hold his temper"

[y/n], firstly annoyed by his unquestioned monologue, eventually silently listened to one disclosure after another travelling from the boy's mouth. He did not seem to be aware of what amount and kind of information he was letting slip. The dullness in her body got replaced by the revival of cunning curiosity. "Oh, I see" she answered with a light smile, presenting her interest in the male's attendance. "So, Shiro... Who do you like to train with?"

She tried to keep her interrogation sounding as innocent as possible, stroking a strand behind her ears.

"Hmm... Yasu maybe? He is strong, but pretty passive. He does not show up often to training sessions as well. Okay, not Yasu. Isamu I guess. No, I am too afraid of him... Well Akito then-"

"Is Isamu good at fighting?" The girl had placed her form next to him, slowly making paces towards the living room while keeping eye contact, offering her conversation- partner to join her in her journey. Shiro unresistingly trotted along.

"Oh yes, he is, he is the best of us I'd say. He once-"

"And Katsuro?"

They had just entered the resting area as the boy abruptly halted in his tracks. He caught her in a blank stare, pushing the girl into insecurity. But in the next moment, he shrugged and picked up the walk again. "Katsuro has a... how should I put it- A very 'own' style of fighting."

She attentively eyed the boy from the side. A numb, almost soulless expression hovered on his features, his void look directed into nothingness.

Did I push a button...?

"Oh however-" Just like he heard her thoughts, he snapped out of his distant state and the known joyfulness returned to his voice and visage. "What I wanted to ask you... Akito didn't hurt you, did he?"

The female was stuck in a moment of dazzlement at his question. Reminiscing about the bygone hour, she found herself gingerly shaking her head. Some bruises and scratches might have been added to the collection on her skin, but nothing that took her serious attention so far.

"I thought about making some tea" Shiro announced, slightly nudging her shoulder with his side. "Care to join me?"

She warily glanced up at his silver eyes. A welcoming and warm grin formed on his lips, pushing the captive to keep his company for the time being.

With a defeated sigh and a last unsettled glimpse towards the corridor, she took his offer. "Why not..."

The two individuals had claimed the entire couch corner as their own, sitting face to face on both ends of the cushion ware. The next bundles of minutes elapsed in protracted lethargy. Only the sounds of sipping were heard, while the whitehead did nothing but dagger the female with his intensive observation. [y/n]'s gaze switched from the depth of her cup to the ceiling to several random items in the room, searching for any distraction to not return the male's persistent stare. Until, eventually, her patience snapped. "What!?"

Shiro showed impressed surprise at her hissing, yet did not let himself getting cowed by her harsh vocals. "Oh, nothing" he smiled softly. "You are just very pretty"

The captive almost dropped her tea, gaped at him, then shook her head, intensified her clutch around the porcelain, frowned and shook her head again. "Stop that"

"I mean it"

"Stop."

The boy just chuckled. "You're not very good with compliments, are you?"

"I'm not very good with compliments from my kidnappers"

This time, it was his turn to be speechless. The glee vanished from his face and left a dark shadow of contemplation. "Yeah, about that..." The table's turned as the male averted his eyes, seeming to grow uneasy under the captive's scrutinizing glare. "It's not like I wanted to do this. And I surely can't do a thing to change it. I can only try to make it... the least uncomfortable for you..."

With each spoken word, his vocals lost volume until he barely breathed out the sentences. [y/n] needed to cease any motion and focus all her attention on him in order to understand his last line. The proposition caught her off guard- But the bulky and tall wall of mistrust around her kept her from pondering on its genuineness. Acting as if she hadn't understood his mumbling, she raised her voice to return the dialog to a matter that caught her previous interest. "However, as we talked about it, the training with Akito is rough."

She paused for a moment and glanced at her conversation partner, checking if her approach of the subject was too direct. But Shiro neutrally looked at her with his usual expression, passing her a cursory smile to confirm his attentiveness. "He is absolutely merciless sometimes and bad at losing as well. I wonder how long I need to keep up with that"

For the split of a second, something in the whitehead's face distorted. One might never noticed it without having an experienced look for reading the details, but the girl could have sworn to see his gaze jump to the floor.

Gotcha.

You know something.

Shiro shrugged his shoulders. "None of us fully understands what happens here sometimes. Maybe he just wants a partner he hasn't tried before. Maybe Katsuro ordered him to do so as a test for his self- control, he just loves to tease him." He took a sip before giggling to himself: "Half of the things done here don't follow a logical context. Like last week, Isamu ordered Yasu to do the ironing. And guess what- We don't even have an iron!"

The boy now let out a guffaw. The female watched him spilling his tea all over the expensive leather. "But the expert he is he heated a pan and used it as iron!"

[y/n] couldn't help but sense the corners of her mouth slowly, than more rapidly turning upwards, until her lips were parted to release a hesitant but sincere laughter. She could just perfectly imagine the cyan head standing at the stove with a face as unreadable as a rock, performing the described action with unshakable seriousness.

"Look at you" The male returned her focus back to himself with a voice just as gentle as his gaze. "You finally smiled."

The mood he intended to build up was remorselessly cut down buy a soft object suddenly taking his vision. He looked down at the pillow in his lap, calculating back the route it emerged from to find a warningly peering [h/c] individual.

"It told you to shut up before"

"Oh" Shiro mockingly wriggled his eyebrows. "And you expect me to listen to the words of a young and defenseless missy?"

Another red cushion hit his visage. His smile twisted into a challenging grin. "Is the little alley cat getting angry?"

[y/n] fumbled around on the spots next to her; but her fingers wouldn't find the smooth textile she planned to throw at her cocky opponent once more.

"Running out of ammunition?"

Her eyes snapped back to the member who had positioned himself in a pile of pillows, teasingly dangling around the ruby velvet in her view. "What you gonna throw now? Yourself?"

Heaving herself from her seat, she took a leap forward to clutch her hand around the bolster, determined to reconquer her temporary weapon. But before her palm could close around its edges, it abruptly disappeared from her reach. "Hey!"

The boy held the object high above his head, his back pressing against the couch's rest to widen the distance between the textile and the incited female. But the growing provocation only motivated her more.

The fight for the soft article continued in childlike commitment and soon switched places to the ground as the two individuals lost their balance on the restricted furniture. Neither of them minded the dropped and forgotten cups or other usable items in their circle; their will to throw themselves at each other was only limited to this certain one elegant cushion article. Eventually obtaining a safe and manifested grasp around the pillow, [y/n] lifted it up in the air like trophy, surrounded by a readable aura of victory. "HA! Who's defenseless now!?"

"[y/n]... Are you trying to seduce me?"

She immediately froze in words and movement as the male redirected her attention to his lying form. His pale cheeks were tinted in a tender pink, his silver locks spread out on the floor, his half- lidded eyes gazing at her. The blood rushed to her face when she became aware of the position she had trapped them both in.

The shock and embarrassment paralyzed not only her tongue as she needed her time to activate her legs' abilities- But before she finally regained the power to jump up, a hand on her shoulder disabled her once again.

"Sounds like fun. Mind if I join?" The leader whispered into her ear.