Masquerading Virtuoso【Tokyo Ghoul Fan-Fiction】

vii. Ave Maria

【I apologize beforehand if this isn't a great chapter---I've been distracted with my graduation (this Friday) lately, so yeah. I promise not all chapters will be awkward, like this one might be to some.】(╥﹏╥)

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'。'･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

"Underneath her painted elegance, resides an unfathomable horror: a merciless nature."

〜〜〜＊〜〜〜

Tsuki sat behind the counter in the Nerima Public Library, her chocolate eyes subtly scanning the room. She noticed many young faces decorating the tables, possibly studying for their upcoming exams in January. She lowered her head and grimaced, the memory of the report replaying in her head:

"Ashen remains of the Nomura family were recovered after the tragic fire on their home. Authorities have yet to release the cause, but suspect foul play was involved. The bodies of the father, Nomura Dai, the mother, Hisakawa Ame, and the body of what authorities assume to be of Nomura Tsuki were found after the flames had been extinguished ...

"The Kyoto City University of Arts mourns the loss of beloved student and pianist, Nomura Tsuki---along with parents Nomura Dai and Hisakawa Ame---who died last week in their home ...

"She was a true pleasure to listen to at the piano. Authorities have labeled it a freak accident. She played with heart and efficient technique. A golden and brilliant soul---a true virtuoso."

The reports had slowly ceased, which made Tsuki suspicious of remaining in Ōta, due to CCG. She didn't know if they would be looking for her, but just in case she had did what she could to keep under their radar. They hadn't officially marked her off as deceased, so she knew they still had their doubts about her supposed death.

Who the third corpse had belonged to ... she hadn't known.

Sighing, she tapped the thin stack of papers against the desk, laid them neatly down, then ran her hand through her short, black tresses. Standing up from her seat, she left her station and traveled over to a row of books---they were all biographies based on the lives of composers arranged in chronological order. Tsuki scanned the many titles in awe, a satisfying sensation of nostalgia coursing through her body as she traced her fingers along their aging spines.

She smiled to herself and hesitated on Franz Schubert's biography, the familiar and beautiful memory of the time she had been an accompanist to a talented cellist on one of his most popular compositions, Ave Maria, came to mind. Tsuki had been so wound up within her thoughts that she hadn't even bothered to take notice of the tall man presently standing next to her. As she was about to leave the books, he reached over and snatched the biography she was gawking at and flipped through its pages.

"Do you study him?" he inquired, causing her gaze to drift from the shelf, to him.

Tsuki inquisitively examined him for a moment, confusion apparent as she noticed that his tired grey eyes were seemingly intent on the content within Schubert's biography.

"No," she replied, knowing to herself that she had, at one point, been enticed by his works so much she'd searched him in her college's library.

He suddenly closed the book and slid it back into its socket. "I see," he said, turning away from her and leaving the aisle of books for the opposite side.

Peering through the crevice between the books and shelf separating them, she raised her eyebrow in question."Do you?"

He glanced back at her, his dark eyes showing no sense of emotion.