You lowered your head as you entered the gates of the school, the urge to turn and leave becoming stronger with each step. You entered the school and stopped at the staircase, wondering if you should go up and see Hanako.

Just as you turned to head to class, you felt something hard collide with you, making you stumble back a bit.

"Ow..."

You looked down to see Kou sitting on the ground, rubbing his head before looking up at you, and your eyes widened when you noticed the tears streaks on his cheeks.
"Kou?" You extended your hand towards him as you tried to soften your voice. "Are you okay?"
Tears filled the blonde's eyes, and you gasped when instead of taking your hand, he jumped up, wrapping his arms around you and burying his face in your chest.
"It's Teru," He muttered. "He-he's missing..." Your blood ran cold as Sakura's words came to mind, further making you believe that Hanako was behind this.
"Hey," you said softly, and Kou looked at you. "Don't look so worried. We both know that Teru's really strong s-so I doubt anything bad could've happened to him." Kou nodded slowly, and you gave him a reassuring smile.
"Now, there's no reason to cry. He's probably in some boundary defeating some evil apparition as we speak." Kou's eyes lit up at the thought.
"You're right! What was I thinking?" He asked. "I should go find him!" He rushed off, and you sighed, part of you being happy that you made him feel better, but another part of you feeling bad about lying to him. 

You had to figure out what was really going on.

You knocked on the door to the bathroom before entering.

"Hanako?" You called, walking further inside and closing the door behind you. "Hanako, I know you're here."

"What is it?"

You turned to see Hanako standing in front of the door, his head down as he refused to look you in the eye.
"I...I need to ask you something," you said, and Hanako stayed silent. "Tell me the truth. Did you break our agreement?" You noticed Hanako tense slightly. 
"I...when Tsukasa took me, he told me that you killed Teru and a boy named Yuki...and then erased my memories of them. Is that true?" Hanako stood there.
"I'm so sorry, Y/n," he said, taking slow steps toward you, wrapping his arms around you and pulling you into his chest. "I wasn't able to protect you from Tsukasa before, but I can fix it...I can get it right this time."
"Hanako, answer my-" Your eyes widened when you felt his grip on you tighten, preventing you from pulling away.
"Everything will be alright. Just relax," he whispered, pressing his index finger, middle finger, and thumb on your forehead. You stared at him in confusion when nothing happened. Hanako let out a shaky gasp as his eyes landed on the glowing protection charm on your cheek, which prevented him from erasing your memories.

"Hanako?" You questioned, but he stayed silent, his breathing becoming more ragged and his body beginning to tremble. As much as he tried to control himself, the more he stared at that mark, the angrier he got. If you were listening closely, you might've been able to hear his sanity finally snap, and before he knew it, he was seeing red. Before you could react, he shoved you against the wall, pinning your wrists above your head with one hand.
"Where did that come from?" He asked, already knowing the answer but not wanting to believe it. You stared at him in fearful confusion.
"What are you talking about?"
"That protection mark on your cheek," he growled. "Where did it come from?" You felt your heart hammering against your ribcage as he stared at you, but your eyes widened when you finally realized why Tsukasa had kissed you.

"Tsukasa...he said it was so that you wouldn't erase my memories."

Hanako cupped your face in his hand. You didn't know when he had grabbed his knife, but you felt your breath hitch in your throat when he ran it across the mark on your cheek, but not applying enough pressure to break the skin.
"Why can't you... why can't everyone understand that you're mine?" He whispered absentmindedly. You closed your eyes fearfully, waiting for him to cut you or worse.
"Y/n, do you remember when I said defying me would result in punishment?" He asked, and you opened your eyes, nodding slowly.
"I wasn't lying," he whispered. "In exchange for my friendship, you agreed that you'd become my assistant, which means you work for me. You belong to me, and you do what I say without question, do you understand?" You gulped nervously.
"Mhm," you hummed shakily.
"Good," he murmured. "You will forget all about this. You will not talk to Sakura anymore, and if you see Tsukasa, you will either try to exorcise him or find me or Mr. Tsucigomori. Am I understood?" You let out another hum, not being able to bring yourself to talk.
"Good girl," he praised as he pulled a knife away, but you didn't get a chance to let out a sigh of relief before he wrapped his arms around your waist, leaning down to press his ear against your chest.
"You're hearts racing," he noted. "Are you afraid of me?" Before you could reply, the loud sound of the bell ringing made you jump, and in a split second, Hanako had released you and was now standing in front of the window.
"That's your bell, isn't it?" He asked. "You can leave. We wouldn't want you to be late for class, would we?"

You walked out of the bathroom, your head down as you tried to calm your racing heart and process what had just happened. You had never seen that side of Hanako.

You didn't realize where you were going, but you just knew you needed to get as far away from Hanako as soon as possible. You turned the corner, only to bump into something hard, almost falling to the ground if it weren't for a hand grabbing your wrist.

"Honestly, do you ever look where you're going?"

You looked up at Mr. Tsuchigomori, and his eyes widened when you did.
"Why are you crying?" He asked, and you titled your head in confusion, pressing your finger against your face and indeed feeling a steady stream of tears falling.
"Oh..." You muttered absentmindedly. "S-sorry." You moved to walk past him, but Tsuchigomori placed a hand on your shoulder.
"It was him wasn't it?" He asked, and at that, you broke down.

"Here." Mr. Tsuchigomori handed you a box of tissues to wipe your face before sitting down on the cot in front of you. You looked around the nurses' office, beginning to get used to being in there.
"Can you tell me what happened?" Like last time, you were too upset to notice the hint of genuine concern in his voice and just thought he didn't really care, but needing to vent, you told him everything, and he listened carefully. Once you finished, he waited a moment to speak, but the look on his face was like he wasn't surprised about any of this.
"So, what's going to be your choice?" He asked, and you sighed sadly.
"I'm going to go with Tsukasa," you responded, but you also didn't want to leave Hanako. Mr. Tsuchigomori nodded.

Exactly what'd he'd read.

"You're exhausted. Get some rest, okay?" He asked, standing up. Knowing that if he stayed there any longer, he'd end up revealing something that would jeopardize you even more. You hiccuped, wiping your eyes before laying down on the cot, falling asleep almost as soon as your head hit the pillow.

"How annoying," Sakura muttered, standing outside of your last class of the day, watching as the rest of the students exited the classroom and realizing you weren't among them. She walked down the empty hallway, ready to search for you, only to stop when she felt an all too familiar presence behind her for the fifth time that day.
"You've been following me for a while now. Can I help you?" She asked, looking up to stare at Hakujodai, who was hovering above her. It disappeared as soon as she did.

"Leave my assistant be."

She turned around to see Hanako standing there, his hands behind his back as he glared at her.
"I follow Tsukasa's orders, not yours," Sakura said calmly as she turned to face him, his intimidating demeanor that would've had anyone else trembling in fear not affecting her.
In a second, Hanako was hovering above her, his now glowing red eyes fixed on her as he pointed his knife at her throat. 
"Don't make me repeat myself," he said. "Leave her be." Sakura stared up at him for a moment before a small smile slowly made its way onto her face. She chuckled darkly.
"I bet you've already shown her your true colors," she sneered. "And now that you can no longer tamper with her memories, you're scared. You know you're losing her." Hanako's eyes widened at her words, and he quickly raised the knife over his head, bringing it down to stab her, only for a mark on her cheek to glow and send him flying back.

"All we want to do is save her," Sakura said, staring down at him with eyes full of disgust.
"And all you're going to do is hurt her in the end. You may have been able to change your future once, but I doubt you'll be able to do it again this time."
"I would never hurt her," Hanako growled as she walked away.
"Well, that's not what's written in your book. And when she chooses to join us, Tsukasa will erase all of her memories of you, and then she'll be free from all of your manipulating."
"You can't take her away from me!" Hanako shouted, but Sakura didn't respond, letting out a thoughtful hum as she walked away. 

Hanako watched her walk away, his fear increasing with every step she took.

"I would never hurt her...I wouldn't..." he repeated over and over again, the thought of you forgetting about him plaguing his mind and driving him insane. After a moment, he stood up and teleported himself to the nurses' office, where he found you sleeping peacefully. He reached out to touch you but stopped just short of it and instead sat down on the floor next to your bed, taking your hand in his and pressing it against his face, the small action sending a wave of relief through him and causing him to drift off to sleep as well.

"Fouuund youuuu."

You groaned tiredly, slowly opening your eyes to see it was now dark outside.

'Why did they let me sleep this long?'

Feeling a cold sensation on your hand, you looked down to see Hanako sleeping on the floor with his head resting on the bed, and clutching your hand tightly.

"Y/n..." Your head snapped towards the door, the voice calling you, seeming almost hypnotic as you slowly stood up, completely forgetting about Hanako as you approached the door. You opened it and walked out into the hallway to see Tsukasa and Sakura standing at the end of it.
"Did you have a nice nap?" Tsukasa asked, and you nodded nervously.
"Have your made your choice?" Sakura asked, and you nodded, glancing back at the door.
"If I go with you, I won't die?" You asked.
"That's right," Tsukasa confirmed. "I'm sure you know that it's not impossible to change your future, and if you come with me, I'll do just that." He held his hand out to you, and you felt yourself taking slow steps towards him, reaching out to grab his hand but stopping just short of it.
"I...I decline." Both Sakura's and Tsukasa's eyes widened, and Sakura let out a sigh as Tsukasa clenched his fists.

"Fine..." He muttered. "I'll just force you."

Everything felt as if it was going in slow motion as you watched him hold up three fingers, and you realized that Hanako did the same thing when he tried to erase your memories. A cold sensation came from your cheek as the protection charm disappeared. You stood frozen as his fingers slowly came closer. Just as they were mere inches away, a gust of cold air hit you, and in a split second, Sakura and Tsukasa were now at the other end of the hall.
"Sorry..." You felt a chin rest on top of your head as a cold hand reached up to cover your eyes. "But it looks like she's staying with me."

You let out a sigh, having never been more relieved to hear Hanako's voice. Tsukasa clenched his fists angrily before taking a calming breath.
"Fine," he breathed. "It's your funeral." 

You watched as he and Sakura disappeared, and you couldn't help but get the feeling that you'd be seeing them again.

"Are you okay?" You felt Hanako turn you to face him before scanning you for any injuries.
"Yeah," you muttered, only to gasp as he pulled you into a hug.
"H-Hanako?"
"I'm sorry...For scaring you. I was just scared that you'd leave me, a-and I didn't know what to do." You found yourself bringing your hands up to return the hug.
"I forgive you," you said, and Hanako pulled away to stare at you in surprise.
"And, I'll continue to be your assistant and friend, as long as you promise not to erase my memories again." You held up your pinky finger, and Hanako smiled as he intertwined his finger with yours.
"I promise," he said, and you smiled until another problem came to mind.
"Also, I need you to tell me," you said. "Did you kill Yuki and Teru? Please tell me the truth." Hanako stared at you for a moment.
"No," he said. "I would never." You nodded.
"Alright. I believe you."

Approaching footsteps made you jump, and you and Hanako both turned to see Mr. Tsuchigomori approaching.
"Congratulations," he said to you. "You have officially changed your future." Your eyes widened at his words.
"What?" You asked.
"Your book read that you'd go with Tsukasa, and he'd erase your memories of Hanako. They'd tell you that pretty much everything that happened with you and Hanako happened with Tsukasa and tell you that Hanako was evil. Hanako would later try to kill Sakura, but you'd jump in front of her and get killed, but now you've chosen to stay with Hanako, that won't happen." You smiled as he ruffled your hair.
"Good job, kid," he said. "Now go home."

Once you had left, Hanako turned to Mr. Tsuchigomori.
"So she's going to live?" He asked, and Mr. Tsuchigomori shook his head.
"No, she's just delayed her time of death by a few days." Hanako nodded thoughtfully before disappearing, and Tsuchigomori guessed he was going to go think of ways to keep you safe.

Mr. Tsuchigomori walked back into his office and picked up a book with the title reading Y/n L/n. He opened the book and turned to the future chapter which only had ten more pages in between that and your death chapter. He covered his face with his hands and sighed sadly.

'You feel guilty because you know there's nothing you can do to stop it.'