Satsuki felt herself lying on something warm and soft.
She couldn't quite figure out what it was, but it wasn't important. All she wanted to do was give in to the comfort of whatever it was she was lying on. The cold, gentle breeze only served more to support her comfort. The only thing she wanted to do was sleep—she was feeling quite drowsy after all.
She heard a soft, feminine giggle causing her to slowly peek from her eyes.
What the…
In front of her was a silhouette going against the bright light from the ceiling. Her vision was too groggy to make it out, but whoever it was—was staring at her intently with a deep shade of blue eyes. She blinked.
"Where am I?"
"That's not important right now," the mysterious girl told her. Something about her felt eerily familiar, but Satsuki couldn't quite remember. Not that she cared at a time like this. "All you need to know is that your safe lying on my lap."
"What happened?" Satsuki probed further. "How did I get here?"
The moments those words slowly came out of her mouth weakly, her eyes immediately shot open. The memories came flooding back, raiding her mind with the painful memories of…
"Scarlet!"
She sat up in reflex as she said her name. The memories of her came back. The drug. Her mother. Torture.
It definitely wasn't a dream—the pain felt very, very real. She even could still feel it vaguely haunting her skin; it made something cold run down her spine.
"Where am I?! What happened?!" Satsuki shouted looking around; she was inside a different room on a different bed. She snapped her head around to face the silhouette. "Who are you?!"
The girl smiled at her sweetly. She had blonde hair tied into a bun and lightly tanned skin, and was wearing an expensive black kimino. She also had a familiar set of sky blue eyes that Satsuki felt nostalgic of.
"It's been a long time, Satchan. My Satchan."
***
Satsuki felt her blood run cold and her muscles suddenly hardening. She felt lost. She didn't know here she was, and who she was facing. All she knew, is that she was captured by some foreigners. She was vulnerable to whatever they did to her—and she absolutely loathed feeling vulnerable.
"What's the matter, Satsuki? You look like you've seen a monster." She asked with sweetness that made Satsuki feel all the more uncomfortable. There was something about her that felt uncanny—then again, all of the women she met here had a few screws loose.
Satsuki could only crawl backwards until she hit a bedpost. "H-how do you know my name?"
"How could I possibly forget you?"
"Forget me? Have we met before?" Satsuki narrowed her eyes, carefully watching her every movement.
"You don't remember me?" She pouted then shook her head. She then cupped her cheeks and shook her head. "It's to be expected, Mother did repress your memories."
Repress my memories?
She shook her head and smiled at Satsuki with fake innocence. "… it doesn't matter. I'll make you remember."
She then began to crawl to Satsuki to the point where their noses almost touched. Her right hand reached the back of her hair and grabbed the pin holding it. She then pulled the pin, making her long blonde hair fall down to her waist.
What is she doing?
She tied her hair into pigtails with the same pins used to tie down her hair into a bun. Afterwards she cupped both sides of Satsuki's, who was petrified for reasons he could not explain, cheeks.
"Does this make you remember me now, my dear Satchan?" She used that innocently sweet voice that made Satsuki sweat.
Why do I have a bad feeling about her?
"Do you?" She asked again, looking deep into her onyx eyes. It felt like she was digging into her soul.
Something about her… doesn't feel human.
She heard her sigh and then retracted her head back a few centimeters.
What is she? This feeling…
She giggled. "I guess I'd just have to force you to remember."
Before Satsuki could react, she suddenly felt firm hands grip her shoulders and she was pinned down to the bed so hard that it felt like she was gonna submerge and become one with it.
"Sat~chan," she sang.
…her eyes…
***
A seven year old blond haired girl was sitting on the grass beside the river bank crying.
Naruko didn't know why she was treated this way—with scorn. Why did the other kids have to be so mean? She didn't do anything to deserve it, did she? The only she wanted to do was be friends with them.
Where am I?
As she stared into her own reflection in the mirror while sobbing. Her face was a mess from the other kids throwing rocks at her. Oddly enough, the scars healed almost immediately—she didn't know how or why.
She felt something poke her back.
"Hey, why ya cryin'?" A soft childish voice behind her asked.
She turned her head to see a kid her age with raven hair.
The blonde sniffed and rubbed her nose. "What do you want?" She said harshly.
"Nothin' just wanted to know why ya cryin'?" Satsuki asked with a huge grin on her face.
"None of your business!" She rudely blew her off and went back to staring at the river.
She suddenly felt surprise when she felt something brush the hem of her skirt. From the reflection of the river, she saw somebody had taken a seat next to her—the raven haired kid.
She didn't talk, but their reflection was sending a clear message, she was just smiling at her all bubbly and happy. The exact opposite of what Naruko was feeling now—lonely and sad.
In a huff and a fit of frustration and a bit of jealousy, she immediately stood up and left, still crying, leaving the kid by herself to look at her with wonder..
"Hey, wait up!" Satsuki kid called out.
"Go away!" She snapped back at her.
She turned her back to her again and proceeded to be on her way, intending to go back to the orphanage she hated so much. But before she could get out of the riverbank, she felt a hand placed on her shoulder.
"Wanna play?" Satsuki asked with a smile.
Naruko looked at her suspiciously. Was this some sort of prank? She had been given that offer before only to be made fun of by the other kids. It turned out to be a cruel joke —and she was the punch line. She was skeptical, and did not want it to happen again. She had no intention of being hurt and be made fun of a second time.
"No" She said bluntly and shook her off.
She made her way back to the orphanage, ignoring the now frowning girl.