Welcome to Gaia! ::

Violet eyes gazed out a large window. Trailing the endless snow, his eyes fell on the ice crystals clinging to the wreath on his neighbor’s door. Yamashita Yue watched disgustedly as people drifted to his own brilliantly lit entrance. From his position by the window in his silent room, he could hear the loud rambunctious sounds of celebration in the parlor.

Reaching into his desk, the raven-haired boy extracted a photo. The noise of the party faded as he revisited the past sealed in the black-and-white image taken months before. In the dark room, the moon’s light revealed the beloved memory of the eight-year old. With a gentle smile, his mother draped an arm on his shoulders while her other hand caressed her protruding stomach, obviously well into pregnancy.

An unwanted tear splashed onto the treated paper. Yue angrily rubbed away the moisture. He refused to show his vulnerability, even with only the moon to see.

A month before the baby was due, a complication arose. The placenta began detach itself, putting both the mother and unborn child at risk. The doctors attempted to save both lives, however, the problem was discovered too late. Yue’s sister was a stillborn. His mother never fully recovered from the ordeal; her condition was weak due to excessive bleeding. Weeks of struggle later, she joined his sister.

Despite his wife’s death weeks before, Yue’s father was determined not to show moments of weakness and staged an elaborate Christmas feast.

Yue scorned the pathetic attempt to act as if grief had not taken over their lives. He knew as the life flickered out of her eyes, so had the light in his heart. Determined never to feel the pain of loss again, Yue closed his bitter heart tightly. Although it still pulsed with life, his heart was frozen in death.

“Yamashita-san, what happened back there? You‘ve failed to retrieve one of the souls despite your months of experience? You should‘ve gotten this down by now!”

Yue unconsciously clenched his jaw and remained silent. Was it truly his fault that one of the souls from the plane crash in the mountains refused to go? The spirit’s last words before disappearing into an abyss were, “Only she can set me free.” No mention of who “she” was or where “she” was could be found. Humans and their inability to let go of their past… He wanted to growl in frustration.

He craved to argue his side but repressed the urge. In a mission where all the spirits were clinging to their past, which was an extremely odd coincidence, Yue was the only one to lose a soul. Arms by his side, Yue bowed deeply. He apologized profusely for his mistake and swore it will never reoccur in an even voice despite his turmoil thoughts. Failure was not an option.

A rapist was on the loose; no matter how hard the shinigami tried, he always eluded capture. It wasn’t the only strange fact in this case: this rapist was reported to have committed crimes around the world within hours of each other. Was this a supernatural human? There wasn’t enough information.

Yue managed to capture the outlaw before he violated another young woman. The shock and shame from the rape would have led to her suicide. Advising to find the leader, Ryo offered to hold down the perpetrator. Unfortunately, his leader found Ryo with the rapist, who launched into a fabricated tale of how he ensnared him.

Hiroki clapped his hand on the brooding Yue’s shoulder, “Stealing credit from newcomers is a hazing ritual for us. But it’s odd, someone should have joined our division by now.” It had been almost half a century since Yue joined. Until another shinigami entered Division X, he would remain the rookie. Tired of being blamed of other’s actions while they were recognized for his accomplishments, Yue came to his decision.

Fists clenched and darkened amethyst eyes flashing, Yue angrily turned away from his division. Away from his leader proudly praising Ryo for his “work”. From now on, he shall go under the name of Yami Yoru, a rogue shinigami. He would finally be acknowledged for what he does.