Welcome to Gaia! ::

“Where would you like to sit?” Yori asked Hiraki as they were now in the area directly behind the school building in a small grassy field. Hiraki glanced around the grassy area, searching for a place for them to sit. His eyes fell upon some older boy who was probably nine or ten years old. He was shouting orders at younger students, demanding for them to either get out of his way, or asking for the typical things like money or food. “People like him deserve to rot away in jail.” Hiraki spoke heavily under his breath. Yori’s gaze drifted over towards the older boy, “People like him?” She asked softly. Hiraki nodded, “People that are evil… Kato has been disciplined over eight times this school year and has never changed… people like him will never change.” Yori blinked at his words, “That’s some strong words, Hiraki-kun.” Hiraki’s gaze remained on the older boy, looking at him coldly. Before Yori could stop him, Hiraki was walking towards Kato with his fists clenched tightly. Kato shoved a large mouthful of some little kids lunch in his mouth when he noticed Hiraki advancing closer to him, he laughed loudly, glancing around at those around him, “Look at this kid.” He motioned in Hiraki’s direction, “Look at him, his fists are balled and he has a serious look on his face as if he’s going to do someth…” Hiraki slammed his small fist into the center of Kato’s stomach with unexpected force causing Kato to spit out his breath. Hiraki didn’t cease up on the bully, he swept his foot aside, tripping Kato and as soon as he landed on his back went and popped him on the side of his head with his fist, and walked away from him, trying to contain his anger. Needless to say, Hiraki was sent down to the office for discipline after that incident.

“Eighteen detentions in a row!?” Hakaru blurted out loudly to the principal as she was informed about what Hiraki had done. Hakaru was called down to the school where she now sat in the office with Hiraki in the chair beside her, looking at the principal with a major dirty look. “I see where your son gets his temper from.” The man spoke in a snobby tone that accused Hiraki of being the problem child. Hakaru couldn’t believe that this… man was accusing Hiraki of having problems, “If anyone’s’ to blame it’s that brute Narasu!” She retorted, referring to the boy Kato Narasu. The principal reached upwards, sliding his glasses up the bridge of his nose, “That “brute” you’re insulting so happens to be my dear sisters’ son. And he insists that he was minding his business with his friends when your devil of a son attacked him for no reason at all.” Hakaru nearly lost it and set the man on fire, but she had restraint. “Are you kidding me?! If your nephew is as good of a kid as you claim then how is it that he’s been having disciplinary issues this entire year?!” The principal took his glass cup of coffee and sipped from it silently and waited to set it back down before answering her, more like ignoring her question. “I’m not surprised your boy attacked young Kato, seeing as he takes after his completely childish mother. How old are you anyway?” The principal insulted. Hakaru stood there with her mouth agape, “I’m twenty years old for your information!” Which meant that she had Hiraki when she was just fourteen years old; Hiraki’s father was eight years older than his mother. The principal smirked inconspicuously at Hakaru’s statement, “Sounds like someone couldn’t keep their legs closed.”

Hakaru led Hiraki outside as several floors above them the principal was shot out of the large glass window of his office, covered in flames. “From this moment on you are now going to be home schooled!” Hakaru spoke in an angered tone, although none of her anger was directed towards Hiraki. “Are you sure that was a good idea?” Hiraki asked his mother in a nervous tone, holding her hand. “Of course,” Hakaru replied in an affirmative tone, “Loads of children are home schooled.” Hiraki shook his head, not sure if his mom was ignoring what he meant or if her statement was serious. “I was talking about… you know, lighting him on fire.” Hakaru turned towards her son and pointed towards him with a serious expression, “Hiraki if anyone insults you like that I give you permission to set them ablaze!” Hiraki laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head. “Um, you know I can’t, mom.” Hakaru began to lead them back home, “True… you’re not a witch.” She spoke softly. That’s something about Hiraki’s parents that were different from everyone else, his mother was a magic-user; a witch. Hiraki honestly didn’t know much about his father since he was barely around; he didn’t even know what his name was. The only thing he knew about his father was that he was a weapon, but he didn’t know what that was supposed to mean. “You told me that if you used your magic then the Death Weapon Meister Academy would detect you as a witch and something bad would happen…” He mumbled softly. Hakaru took a deep breath to calm down, “You’re right…” She looked down at Hiraki and smiled, “Your mama just loses her temper a bit… there’s nothing to worry about.” Hakaru moved her hand down her belly and rubbed it, “I tell you what, I’ll let you pick the name of your little brother or sister?” Hiraki turned the other way, “I don’t want to…” He mumbled softly; not too fond on the idea of being “replaced”. Before she was pregnant Hakaru would have pounced on Hiraki and tickled him, but obviously she had to be careful of her belly. Hakaru kneeled down behind Hiraki and hugged him from behind and bit his ear. Hiraki hopped up as she did so, not expecting her to do that. “Let’s go home now, Hiraki.” Hiraki nodded and followed his mother closely, holding her hand securely. “Won’t dad be mad that you took me out of school?” He asked softly. “Not at all,” Hakaru stated, “If he was there and heard what your principal said, he would be dead.”

Hiraki sat quietly and impatiently at the rear end of a large rusty cargo ship. It had been nearly 40 hours since Hiraki had left his mother. Hakaru hated the idea of just placing her children on some rusty vessel that didn’t even look seaworthy. It was bad enough she had to give them up, but at the very least she wanted to send them away on a nice boat or by airplane; hell, should would have preferred to send them away on a flying broomstick. But their father was the one that arranged the travel arrangements, claiming they would attract less suspicion this way… which kind of made no sense. Some kids on a rundown cargo ship would attract a lot more questions if someone spotted them, instead of them being on a nicer ship. There weren’t any rooms or housing on the vessel, which meant Hiraki had to sleep on deck in the cold and keep his barely two year old brother and sister warm and safe. He groaned very loudly in annoyance, “Why…” He clenched his mouth close due to the cold, but also out of frustration. “I shouldn’t have to deal with this… I haven’t done anything.” His little sister, Shiro squirmed lightly in his arms, about to wake up. Hiraki just stared at the young girl, “I could drop you off this boat and no one would ever know…” Hiraki realized what he just said and mentally scolded himself. He looked down at the sleeping twins who were snuggling with each other in his arms, “I’m sorry.” He held them tighter. His mom only asked him one thing and that was to protect his brother and sister, and for her sake he plans on it.

“Ni hao!” An elderly couple called out to Hiraki, greeting the young boy whose siblings were hiding behind his legs, holding both of his hands. Hiraki just stared at the old couple, not sure if they were his grandparents or some greeters; then again, what shady cargo delivery boat has elderly couples that greet them. “Ni hao?” Hiraki asked roughly, not knowing what that even meant. He observed the couple… they did remind him of his father from what he remembers about him. They both had pure black hair and eyes, and were slightly slouched over and wore Chinese farmer outfits; he observed the male a bit, the one that was his grandfather. “How old are you?” Hiraki asked without even thinking. The elderly man just chuckled loudly, holding his stomach. “My, aren’t you full of questions. I happen to be sixty-eight.” The man replied. Hiraki just observed him further; the elderly man had a solid idea about what Hiraki was thinking. “You’re wondering if you’re going to look like me when you’re my age. I’m afraid that’s impossible for you. If I remember correctly you have your mothers’ blood flowing through your veins, and we both know what she is.” Hiraki took the hint and knew he was referring to Hakaru as a witch. It was true that witches are capable of retaining their youth for possibly centuries, but Hiraki wasn’t a witch, but his blood was half-witch. “Due to her “uniqueness” You could probably live double my lifespan.” He then looked down at Hiraki’s siblings, “Same goes for your brother and sister.” The young twins continued to hide behind their older brothers’ legs, not trusting the two grown-ups. “So you’re saying that by the time I’m like, twenty… I’d basically look twenty for ten to twenty years?” He just used the age twenty as an example. “That’s how it works. Once someone like your mother reaches adulthood their aging mostly slows down. But since the three of you are half-bloods it will only slow down partially.” His grandfather was avoiding using terms like witch out in public, although the only people around were probably criminals anyway. The woman that was apparently their grandmother glanced up at the large burning sun which by now was panting and nearly out of energy. “Looks like the moon will be out in probably an hour or two. We must head back now…” The elderly couple looked toward each other and nodded, before grabbing Hiraki’s wrist and forcing him to follow them away from the shipyard and onwards to their home located far away in the Chinese plains, on a secluded land, away from prying eyes.

“So… where do we sleep?” Hiraki asked quietly and cautiously, not trusting the older couple… being around them gave him a hostile vibe. He briefly scanned the land, noticing that the fields were overgrown with grass that looked as if it had not been tended to in over five years. He also noticed the building looked out of shape and rundown. Hiraki’s gaze went back to the old couple, “Where do we sleep?” He asked more firmly, wanting an answer, growing more unnerved with the old pair. The old man who seemed warm earlier now had a cold look on his face. “Before you get s**t around here you’ll answer our questions first, and then you will work to earn your keep. Seeing as those two brats can’t do anything you’ll be carrying the weight of three.” Hiraki narrowed his eyes at the man; he knew he was no good. His grandfather smacked Hiraki across his face, knocking him flat on his back. “First you will learn respect. We’re not your parents; we’re definitely not going to baby you.” Shiro and Karo were quickly on their knees besides Hiraki, holding their older brothers hands. The man turned towards his wife, “And if you think there’s no way we’re your grandparents since we’re being very strict, you’re damn wrong. We are your grandparents, and we will treat you the same way we treated your father.” The man decided it was time for some introductions, “I go by Xin; you’re grandmother’s name is Yua.” The older man popped his neck, “Now answer some of our questions and then your time here will begin.” He went and placed his foot upon Hiraki’s chest, prepared to apply pressure if he refuses to answer him, or speaks rudely to him. “You’re not what we hoped for… you’re completely useless. After countless generations of demon weapons we finally have one that has witch blood and yet they can’t do s**t. You’re a disgrace to both your witch blood and your weapon blood.” He applied pressure against Hiraki’s chest out of anger, causing the boy to choke in pain, trying to breathe under the pressure. “Have you ever used magic before?” He asked simply. Hiraki was pushing against the heavy foot on his chest, trying to regain his breath; Xin raised his foot to allow him to breathe. “Answer me, or I will make sure to collapse one of your lungs. Have you ever shown any potential towards using magic?” Hiraki slowly recovered painfully and shook his head to say no. “Alright, good… Next question, what kind of witch was your mother?” Witches magical abilities are unique to them; all witches take after some sort of animal or creature. There are witches whose abilities are based around feline traits, even mouse traits. “I… don’t know.” Hiraki replied, his voice shaking. Xin reapplied pressure on the boys chest, “That’s not the answer we’re looking for.” Hiraki honestly didn’t know what kind of witch his mother was. Shortly after she had Hiraki she hid away all of her witch related items and clothing to make sure no one found out about her. Xin scanned Hiraki and his siblings, “It may be possible that you are a witch… but you’re witch blood is dormant. Your siblings most likely take after your fathers’ bloodline. I can tell a demon weapon when I see one, and they certainly have it.” Xin glanced coldly down at Hiraki, “The three of you may have witch blood, but it’s very weak in your siblings. However, your witch blood is definitely the strongest amongst you, and I can sense something hiding in your soul.” Hiraki stared coldly, hating the man that stood in front of him. The older man just grinned, “Oh, I see you have a temper… I like that.” He looked to Shiro and Karo, “I can tell right now they’re both weapons like your father; I can see it in their eyes. As for you, your mothers’ witch bloodline has been strong for centuries and your fathers’ weapon bloodline has been around just as long. You’re not a weapon, I can see that. But by all means that would make you more of a witch.” Xin kicked Hiraki aside, “As you noticed the fields are overgrown and require tending to. That’s your first chore; if you fail to complete that task before sundown neither you nor your siblings will be allowed to eat or sleep for three days.” Hiraki stared coldly at the man, his eyes full of anger as he reluctantly stood up and went to work clearing the fields, which was a very difficult task since the overgrown grass was taller than him. “I hate this place…” He clenched his fists in anger as his grandparents abandoned Hiraki to be by themselves. He looked down at his little brother and sister, “I promise I’ll protect you both…” He swore solemnly.