DARK RED [ITADORI Y.]

―XXI. A WORD

CHAPTER XXI. NEVER SHALL I UTTER A WORD TO THOSE DEVILS!

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THE house was always so lonely when my sister wasn't here. More than often, she would always allow me to accompany her when she left. However, today, she told me to stay here at the cottage while she went elsewhere. My only thought was about her well-being.

I knew she didn't let me go with her because of the men that had begun to show up at the house more and more. They would come during all hours of the night and wake us with their loud shouting and the banging on the door. They've thrown a stone through our windows, and my sister has boarded them up with slabs of wood she's nailed over them.

They left one window untouched, which is where I resided. Seated in one of the wooden chairs that I had pulled up beside the panes, I looked out over the empty field that surrounded us, isolated by the thicket of the forest. It was like the forest was the only thing that protected my sister and me from the monsters and devils that hid around us.

It was silent. There were no steps across the wooden floorboards, no creaking of my sister moving back and forth across the small cottage. No humming as she cooked, or the sound of water boiling around in the pot and making the lid that was too big bounce around. There was no chatter of my sister complaining that we didn't have enough fish broth or cucumbers. We could hardly ever afford cucumbers. She usually grew them, but they didn't do well this year.

Very seldom did my sister ever leave my side. She'd been with me since Father left for his expedition. He told us that he was going out to find the perfect place for the three of us to live without having to worry about anyone else. I was ecstatic for Father to return. I wanted to run off to that place he'd found so he, my sister, and I could all live together!

A loud bang echoed around the forest, traveling inside of the house. It wasn't loud enough for me to jump and run under the bed, as Sister had instructed me to do. No, this was further along in the distance. I climbed further into the window, placing my hands on the cool glass as I looked out. I saw birds fluttering up into the sky, their dark feathers and deep caws following after.

I stood up in the chair when I saw someone running from the woods. A child, like me. Surprisingly, he was pretty close to the cottage, something that almost never happened. What was he doing? Was he being chased?

I jumped down from the chair, running towards the door. I jumped up and moved the board that blocked it out of my way, and cracked it open. I stuck my head out, peering at the boy.

Sandy blonde hair moved with the wind. It was slightly tinted pink because of the blood that ran down the side of his face. He looked jittery--his chest heaving up and down, hands trembling at his sides as he frantically looked around. I could hear the distant shouts of men coming closer.