Ongoing - Blog Posts

Nina is so nice~ Really liked her in ep 4

Really loved the first ep~ (Sorry I cannot draw fish XDD)

Guys please watch Pet XDD

Angry sissy’s here :3

Im in love with those jewels~ By the way there are many good ongoings this year~

I am starting a thread of songs I want people to make edits to. TikTok, YouTube, I don’t care if you send it to me through the mail on a dvd, if it has these songs to two (or more) queer fuckers I’ll watch it. Thank you.

-poltergeist by Blackbear featuring Baywatch

The night hung heavy with anticipation as the neon glow of the city's underbelly illuminated the makeshift racetrack. The air crackled with the energy of imminent competition, and the distant hum of engines hinted at the approaching storm.

Amidst the throng of racers, Diana revved the engine of her cherry pink Chevrolet Corvette, the sleek curves of the sports car gleaming under the neon lights. The scent of burning rubber permeated the air as she eyed her opponent, the legendary 'Tyrant' known for his burned orange Toyota Supra MK IV.

Engines roared to life, and the racers edged to the starting line, the anticipation mounting with each passing second. Nick, masked and clad in the shadows of his reputation, revved his Supra's engine, the orange glow of the tail lights casting an eerie aura around the car.

With a signal, the race exploded into motion. Tires screeched as the two vehicles catapulted into the night, streaks of cherry pink and burned orange leaving trails of color in their wake. The city became a blur as they navigated the winding streets, each turn a test of skill and nerve.

Diana's Corvette, agile and daring, hugged the curves with precision. The roar of her engine harmonized with the pulsating beat of the city, creating a symphony of speed. Nick's Supra, a manifestation of controlled power, surged forward like a burning comet, the orange glow illuminating the darkness.

The roar of engines intertwined with the pulsating beat of the city, and amidst the chaos, Nick's Supra and Diana's Corvette danced, each maneuver a carefully calculated step in their high-speed ballet. The neon-lit streets became their canvas, and the race, their masterpiece.

As the racers hurtled through the urban labyrinth, each strategically timed drift and acceleration became a subtle exchange of wits. The neon-lit streets transformed into a high-stakes chessboard, where every move could be the difference between victory and defeat.

The crowd lining the racetrack erupted into cheers, their voices blending with the roar of the engines. In the heart of the race, amidst the adrenaline and rivalry, Diana and Nick pushed their cars to the limit. The finish line loomed, a distant beacon in the chaos.

As the finish line neared, the air crackled with the tension of uncertainty. In a photo finish, the two cars crossed the line simultaneously, leaving the outcome hanging in the balance. The crowd erupted into cheers, and even in the anonymity of their masks, the exchange of glances between Diana and Nick spoke volumes.

The silence that followed was broken by the announcement, "It's a tie!" The racetrack echoed with the revelation, and in that moment, Diana earned her moniker as 'the Empress.' The mysterious 'Tyrant' had found an equal, and the legend of their rivalry had begun.

If anyone would like to follow on Wattpad, I'd love to be moots there as well! I don't write often, but I do have one book that's ongoing and recent which screenshots are above ^^

https://archiveofourown.org/works/63369610

I know i posted about this before but im going to try again. This is my first book I’ve tried writing, it’s not done yet but I’m not sure if I should keep writing it or not. So advice on what i should do would be super helpful

https://archiveofourown.org/works/63369610

My first real book, if anyone would like to read it

Spring Day | masterpost

— Summary: Becoming a part time english teacher wasn’t exactly the ideal startup you had hoped for yourself when you first moved to Seoul, South Korea. Luckily, you loved working with children and you were grateful to have found a well paying job with housing included so soon after university. Amongst your class, however, are 5 boys who seem to be constantly ostracized not only by the rest of the students but also by the other teachers and staff members. Becoming attached to you fairly quickly, you’re unintentionally tasked to be their permanent caretaker during their stay at school, even staying past the hours you were needed until they were picked up safely. However, what you didn’t expect was to catch the hearts of their seven older brothers, the leaders of a notorious and well known mafia family in Korea.

— Pairing: mafia!bts x poc!curvy!part time English teacher!reader x mafia!children!txt

— Genre: fluff, angst / poly!au / mafia!au

— Status: ON HOLD

— Warnings: bullying (verbal and physical), ostracizing, blood, violence, murder, death, insecurities, anxiety, hurt/comfort, sexual tension, implied (eventual?) smut

________________________________________________________________

Chapter 1: Golden Bell

Chapter 2: Magnolia

Chapter 3: Cherry Blossom

Chapter 4: Azalea

Chapter 5: Rapeseed

Chapter 6: Plum Blossom

**more chapters to come** :)

༘♡ＰＵＭＡ－Ｃ．ＹＥＯＮＪＵＮ

✑𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 01

✑ 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌𝖘: 𝕬𝖓𝖎𝖒𝖆𝖑 𝖆𝖇𝖚𝖘𝖊 (𝖒𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓) 𝖒𝖔𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖆𝖙𝖊 𝖛𝖎𝖔𝖑𝖊𝖓𝖈𝖊, 𝖇𝖑𝖔𝖔𝖉

✑ 𝕲𝖊𝖓𝖗𝖊: 𝕳𝖞𝖇𝖗𝖎𝖉-𝖆𝖚, 𝖗𝖔𝖒𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊,𝕬𝖓𝖌𝖘𝖙

✑ 𝖈𝖔𝖚𝖕𝖑𝖊: 𝕮𝖍𝖔𝖎 𝖄𝖊𝖔𝖓𝕵𝖚𝖓 𝖝 𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖊𝖗 (𝖄 / 𝖓)

✑ 𝕻𝖆𝖗𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝕰𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖓𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖞 𝖘𝖆𝖌𝖆

🍒Prologue here 🍒

next

*ੈ✩‧𝑻𝒂𝒈: @fxd-skz​ 

Confused…

He was faraway from the building, he still could hear the noise in his ears.The first thing he had done was to remove the tracker off his ankles, which have left a reddish mark on it. He had never run as fast as he did now and even though it wasn’t the same on tread mild than in the snow, that didn’t stop him. He had set only one goal in his mind an that was: escape to be free.

He tried not to be distracted by anything that seemed attractive to his eyes, but in reality everything was. Everything was new to him, he did not even remember how he and his family had arrived at the laboratory where they were experimenting with hybrids. He had seen many die from dangerous experimentation with drugs and radiation they did to them. Among those hybrids were his parents; The last thing that had led him to escape from that place was to see one of his childhood friends die: Choi Beomgyu, he had seen him suffer so much that YeonJun had resolved to flee from there.

He was running through the snow-filled forest at last losing the sound of the laboratory alarms, but still he should not be trusted, he knew they would look for him and return him to the laboratory. His breathing was agitated but it was not because of fatigue, it was rather because of the adrenaline he felt rushing through his body and the adrenaline was so great that he felt that not even the large pine trunk that was lying in the middle of the road was a hindrance for him. Two meters high did not make him stop, he continued on his way meeting the end of the forest that made him stop suddenly.

An asphalt road divided half the forest now the question was:

Where should I go? West or east? He didn’t care but he still took the west…

He didn’t know where that direction would lead him, but the further away he was from the lab, it didn’t matter; It was the first time that he felt happy so he stretched his arms that hung from them the chains from which he was tied, generating noise in that silent night. He could feel and breathe the cold air of that place contrasting with how hot his body felt.

He was surprised to see the lights of some small houses apparently there was no one on the street and that only made him say thank you, he was just stepping on the floor of the sidewalks when he could hear the wheels of trucks approaching and they were not just any truck so no. He thought twice about running again looking for a place to hide. In the middle of two somewhat large constructions and the best thing was that it was dark so it was the perfect place to hide, I didn’t think about it for a second more and he moved his body in the direction of that place. Even so, he knew that they would search those particular places, in the dark he perceived an old metal staircase, he did not think twice to start climbing it.

He groaned when he discovered large buildings firmly established not far from him, that reminded him of the old photo that his father had given him to his ten years promising that one day he would take him to know the city. He didn’t even know when his eyes were tearing up at the shocking sight, his excitement was interrupted by the screeching of wheels stopping, causing him to crouch as he approached the edge of the building, but he knew it was them by their scent and it’s that he knew too much that smell of salty with mixed metal … an aroma that he never liked, he hated it more

“There’s no one around here” said one of the men who was lighting up the place where he had been.

“He must not be very far, he will be disoriented and I do not think he will reach the city so it will be easy to catch him” His eyes widened when he saw Dr. Chwe she was the only person he liked inside that laboratory because she was always very kind to him, he observed the woman moving among the men who accompanied her “ Remember not to draw attention and if necessary shoot “ he could see that he gave them a small blue liquid, then he knew that he should not trust Nobody, when they all got into the vans disappeared from his sight, he knew he had to go where the illuminated buildings were.

If he had thought that his life in the laboratory was difficult to live and that his freedom would be simple, he was very wrong because he had not tasted a bite of food for three days, at that moment he was under a frame of a place where they sold meat, he knew that what he would do was not quite right yet he tried to enter, he moved his nose as he got closer to the exquisite aroma and then he saw the large piece of meat that hung from an iron, he was about to take it when he felt that someone was still behind him thus he could not evade the blow that that fat man gave him.

He had not sent him to the ground, but if he had managed to destabilize him, he was barely going to recover when another blow made him fall down the small stairs of the place he let out a groan when he felt the ground wet from the torrential rain that fell that night. When he saw the voluminous male figure approaching him even on the ground, he began to move away from the opposite, emitting grunts:

“I’m tired of you filthy animals that assault my store, but this time I am going to teach you a lesson” his heart cut in his thorax, he didn’t like to be approached too much because he was not used to it, in the laboratory only the doctors approached very close but it was only to hurt him; he kept growling as the man began to approach him with a metal stick.

The only thing that occurred to him at that moment was to push him with his legs and by force he made him fall to the floor while he took the opportunity to stand up making noise due to the chains that he still could not remove; He tried to run but he tripped over something he didn’t know how to describe it and made him fall back to the ground, taking a good blow to the head.

There he was lying on the pavement with the rain soaking his body as he stared at nothing. Soon a light made him growl weakly, he did not know how to describe the aroma he perceived as he heard footsteps approaching him.

By that time his gaze was blurry and unstable, although he could only see red shoes and a high-pitched voice: “ You’re good? Oh Jesus! You’re bleeding …” if he was bleeding and it was the first time he looked at his own blood, it was: thick and dark red but when mixed with the water it turned a bright red 

“I’ll take you home and take care of you”. ..

No, he had not fled the laboratory for freedom and now he would end up in prison again …

Ronne Note’s: Hello cherries 🍒 come back with the first episode of puma … I hope you like it, I still have problems translating and I’m sorry if sometimes  i can’t convey what i want to say but I’m trying hard  (｡•᎔•｡)  … 

the tags are still open  (๑•ᴗ•๑)♡ i luv u 

Abundance

— summary: You never expected that you would end up adopting a hybrid, and if someone had told you that you would end up with seven? Well, you would have thought they were crazy. But here you are, with three different packs of hybrids that don’t get along – but all want to stay with you. Yeah, turns out crazy is an understatement.

— pairing: hybrid bts x human f!reader

— genre: fluff, angst, eventual smut

— word count: 5.2k

— tag list: @keijaycreates​​ @xsmilebitesx​​ @ditttiii​​ Part: II / III / IV / V / VI / VIII / IX / X / XI / Find the rest of the chapters here!

“A hybrid?” You barely hold back a cough, the sandwich you were eating getting caught in your throat at your friend’s surprising words.

“Don’t sound so surprised Y/N, this isn’t the first time we’ve talked about this,” Jihyo rolls her eyes, pushing her water bottle closer to you as she notices you struggling. You quickly take a sip, the cool water soothing your irritated throat.

“No, but it’s the first time we’ve ever talked about me and hybrids in the same sentence,” You shake your head as you lean back in your chair, Jihyo’s eyes narrowing as she looks at you. You advert your eyes to pick at your shirt. Somehow, Jihyo always knows how to make you do something you’re unsure of, and this is too serious to be one of those situations.

“But wouldn’t it be nice? You always complain about being lonely,” Jihyo says, a knowing smile on her face as she takes another bite of her own food.

“Yeah, but I meant a boyfriend, not a hybrid!” You sigh. You had been complaining a lot recently how sad it was to come home to a big empty apartment, and how nice it would be if the space were filled with someone else beside yourself. But a hybrid? You hardly know anything about them. And considering they’re part human and animal, you’re sure they will need a lot of attention, maybe even more than what you can give.

“Besides, I wouldn’t even know where to start. I don’t know anything about them,” You add, a frown on your face as you pick at the escaped fillings of your food. “That’s what the centers are for! You pick out a hybrid and get a manual to go along with it, it’s not that hard,” Jihyo huffs, a small pout on her lips as she finishes her food. You know she only has your best intentions in mind, but this is a big step. One you’re not sure you’re ready for.

Keep reading

MASTERPOST

  BTS x Reader longfic | idolverse au, uber driver!Reader, translator!Reader | Fluff, flirting, super slow burn, angst and hurt/comfort, mature themes and eventual smut 

Status: ongoing

Rating: Teen (for now - will have eventual smut, which will change the rating)

Summary: Your normal life with a normal, yet inconsistent job gets drastically changed when your dreams come true. Sounds boring right? What happens when all of this occurs, but you’re still doing something you love AND getting a large sum for it? Now there’s something to think about, and it’s definitely not what you’re thinking.

Word Count: approximately 92k (so far) 

<< masterlist 

🚗 STORY SURVEY RESULTS 🚗 (31/7/2020)

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵   

Chapter 1 

Chapter 2 

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5 

Chapter 6

Chapter 7 

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25 - SPECIAL

Chapter 26

ongoing …

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Drabbles

Coming Soon

          Copyright © 2020 by salade. All rights reserved. No part of this collection may be reproduced, distributed, or translated in any form or by any means. Legal action will be taken if necessary.

Chapter 2!!!

Chapter: 1/?

Words: 1 199

Language: English

Fandom: One Piece (Anime & Manga)

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Applies

Relationships: Jimbei & Straw Hat Crew

Characters: Jimbei (One Piece), Roronoa Zoro, Usopp (One Piece), Black Leg Sanji, Tony Tony Chopper, Nami (One Piece), Brook (One Piece), Nico Robin, Franky (One Piece), Monkey D. Luffy

Chapter: 2/?

Words: 3 450

Language: English

Fandom: One Piece (Anime & Manga)

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Applies

Relationships: Jimbei & Straw Hat Crew

Characters: Jimbei (One Piece), Roronoa Zoro, Usopp (One Piece), Black Leg Sanji, Tony Tony Chopper, Nami (One Piece), Brook (One Piece), Nico Robin, Franky (One Piece), Monkey D. Luffy

Chapter: 5/? (ongoing)

Words: 5198 (ongoing)

Language: English

Fandom: The Owl House (Cartoon)

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Applies

Relationship: Raeda, Eda Clawthorne/Raine Whispers, Eda Clawthorne and her kids, Amity Blight/Luz Noceda

Characters: Eda Clawthorne, Luz Noceda, Raine Whispers, Lilith Clawthorne, Amity Blight, Willow Park, Gus Porter, Sinag Sun - OC

EDIT (18/10/2021): New chapter just dropped! Sinag Sun is introduced!

Drawing Viktor from Yuri on Ice late at night because he is hot af

Sunrise | Twilight J.H

Back to Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

VI. Midnight Circles

By four o’clock in the morning the two sisters had created what they thought was a solid plan in how to break the news to their mom. The most important part of the plan was that they should definitely wait until morning, rather than waking her up at nearly four in the morning.

“Could you sleep with me tonight?” Mitsuko asked as she slipped into bed, unwilling for Hoshiko to leave her side just yet. She didn’t want her to disappear again.

“I can’t…” Hoshiko replied, her face suddenly distressed. “I mean, I can’t sleep.”

“At all?”

She nodded before elaborating further, “I tried to, yesterday, but… nothing.”

“Could you…” Mitsuko hesitated for a moment. “Lie with me anyway?”

The younger sister simply smiled at her sister softly before stepping forward and sinking into the empty space next to Mitsuko. The eldest pulled the cover over them before reaching across and pulling the younger sister close.

However, as soon as Hoshiko was pulled close to Mitsuko’s throat, she tensed suddenly in her sister’s arms. Concerned, she pulled away to look at her sister in concern, only to be met by dark black eyes.

“Hoshi, is everything okay?” She asked her sister, who still hadn’t moved.

“You smell so…” Suddenly Hosiko interrupted herself by nearly flinging herself across the room, hitting the wall behind, causing the house to shake.

Mitsuko stood to follow her sister but was stopped by a deep growl coming from the younger girl, “Stay back!”

“I don’t under—“ This time Mitsuko was cut off by a furious pounding on their front door.

The two sisters were still for a moment, staring at each other as they listened to banging on the door. As they simply stood there, the distinct sound of their mom's door opening echoed through the house, followed quickly by her footsteps.

“Mom!” Mitsuko called out, moving to her door and stepping out from her room, her sister cautiously following behind her, still keeping a sizeable distance.

By the time the sisters had moved from her room and downstairs, their mom was already at the door and opened it.

“Doctor Cullen?” Their mom said as she opened the door, “It’s the middle of the night!”

“I am aware, Mrs Tanaka; apologies for disturbing you,” Carlisle said with a neutral expression. “I need to speak to your daughters.”

“I’m Carlisle, but only Mitsuko is here; Hoshi is—“

“Right here!” Hoshiko spoke up, stepping forward with her eyes now narrowed at the people at the door. Carlisle wasn’t alone; next to him on either side stood Emmett and Jasper.

Not noticing the sudden tension, Chiyo quickly turned her head to look at her youngest daughter. “Hoshiko… Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick!”

Yet before she could approach her daughter, Carlisle grabbed her arm and pulled her closer to him. “Mrs Tanaka, please stay where you are.”

As Carlisle pulled Chiyo behind him, Jasper stepped forward, eyes focused on Mitsuko as she stood in front of her sister. “Mitsuko, please come here.”

“No.” She refused, “She’s not going to hurt me!”

“Suki…” She turned to face her younger sister, who was looking at her with a deeply pained expression. “You should go stand with them.”

Mitsuko took a moment to look at her sister, really look at her. Alongside the pained expression on her face, Mitsuko realised that Hoshiko was gripping the bannister of the stairs so strongly that she was nearly snapping the wood in half.

Suddenly she found her body becoming stiff and beginning to move without her trying, turning around and walking towards where Jasper and Emmett were standing. As she got closer to them, she felt a cold hand softly wrap around her wrist before pulling her the rest of the way. Now she found herself hidden behind Jasper, who was standing protectively between her and her little sister.

“Will someone tell me what is happening?” Chiyo exclaimed as she looked rapidly between her two daughters in concern.

"I'm afraid we can't tell you…" Carlisle responded cryptically, "But it's imperative your daughters come with us right now."

Instead, she forcefully pointed at the doctor, something she usually only did to her daughters when they were in trouble. “No, they’re not going anywhere until you tell me what is going on.”

“I’m a vampire now, aren’t I?” Hoshiko suddenly questioned, causing everyone’s attention to shift towards her again. “I’ve read Dracula before; I’m not stupid.”

Mitsuko noticed her mom become quiet at Hoshiko’s question, her body stock still at the mention of vampires. Yet before she could ask her, she was interrupted when Carlisle spoke up again, “Mrs Tanaka I really must insist that your daughters come with us right now.”

“But it’s four in the morning!” She spoke again, gesturing to herself as a way to emphasise that she was currently only in a nightgown.

“Listen, we need to get her out of here before a certain group finds Hoshiko here.” Jasper spoke with authority, speaking to them all as if they were officers in the army. “So get dressed if you have to, but we need to leave now.”

This was how Mitsuko found herself sitting in the back of Carlisle Cullen’s car, Jasper next to her as a way to separate the two sisters, something she still didn’t understand was necessary.

Within ten minutes they were already pulling up in front of the Cullens’ woodland house. Outside stood the rest of the Cullen family; they were in a uniformed line and clearly on guard.

When Mitsuko stepped out, she was quickly accosted by Alice and Emilie, who pulled her between them and held her firmly in place. Jasper followed, now standing behind her, creating a protective triangle.

“Why’d you bring her? She’s just a stupid human.” Rosalie had muttered quietly, yet despite being on the other side of the semicircle, Mitsuko heard her crystal clear and bristled slightly.

“Hey!” She couldn’t help but yell at the blonde, whose eyes widened slightly in surprise, “There’s no need to be rude!”

“How did you—“ “Rosalie.” Carlisle interrupted before she could finish her question, “Not now; we have something more important to discuss.”

At that moment, Hoshiko finally stepped out of the car but stayed stock still in front of it. Her eyes flittered between each person with a cold, calculated look in a way Mitsuko had seen her do countless times, usually when she felt trapped.

“We’re not here to hurt you,” Edward spoke up, seemingly reading her distress. “We just want to know what happened.”

Yet before Hoshiko could even begin to explain, Edward’s face changed, and he spoke again, “She found the army.”

“In Seattle?”

“Someone turned her, but she didn’t see who; the only person in her memories I recognise is Riley Biers.”

“What do you mean by her memories?” Mitsuko spoke up again, “Matter of fact, nothing you’re saying is making any sense. Can someone please explain?”

“Hoshiko is right,” Carlisle began to explain. “She has been turned into a vampire, just like my family and I.”

Pause.

“You’re saying my sister is a vampire now?” She asked, “Like from Buffy?”

“We’re way cooler than that.” Emmett spoke with a grin, earning a small slap on the back of his head from Rosalie.

“Right… But wait,” she continued, giving Emmett a small smile before continuing, “Was I attacked by a vampire that night?”

She tried to ignore how Jasper stiffened behind her at the mention of that night and moved to take his hand into hers, providing a comfort she instinctively wanted to give.

“You saw Riley that night, didn’t you?” Edward asked her, but it was clear he already knew the answer.

“Yeah, he seemed… different, angrier. I don’t think he even fully recognised me.”

“He's a newborn, still within his first year,” Carlisle began to explain. “He wouldn’t have been in full control of himself.”

Her face furrowed in thought as she tried to remember that night; in all the fury and violence, there was one thing that was clear: Riley’s teeth sinking into her neck. So she asked the question, “Does everyone that gets bitten turn into a vampire?”

“To my knowledge, yes.”

That made Mitsuko pause in thought, nervously wetting her lips before speaking, Then why didn’t I?”

At her question, she noticed how Carlisle glanced from her to Jasper with an indecipherable expression before looking back to her, answering honestly, “We don’t know yet.”

Turning around, she narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she analysed the expression on Jasper’s face, which seemed to be intentionally as neutral as possible. They weren’t telling her something.

So after letting out a small huff, she pulled her hand away from his own and began to walk away back towards her sister. She only made it one step before a strong pair of arms reached out and pulled her backwards into his solid form.

“That’s a bad idea, darling,” Jasper's voice drawled in her right ear, “You’re going to be good and stay right by me.”

She tried not to let his words affect her; after all, this was neither the time nor the place. She didn’t try hard enough.

“I was just…” Mitsuko trailed off awkwardly as she made eye contact with Emmett, who began waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Now embarrassed, she tried to pull away again, to which Jasper tightened his grip. It wasn’t enough to hurt her, but it was enough for Mitsuko to fully understand just how strong he was.

So strong. She wondered what else he could do with those hands.

Despite her best efforts, all her mind could think about now was possibilities, like how possible would it be for Jasper to use those hands the right way if Mitsuko begged sweetly enough? Maybe she could get him to put his hands on her-

On the other side of the group, Edward began to choke on thin air. Mitusko thought it almost sounded like he was gagging. The others simply ignored the boy's struggling.

"Is he okay?" She asked which was simply answered with a collective laugh from the family.

As the laughter died down, Carlisle explained once more, "Edward can read minds."

"Oh…" If her cheeks could get any redder, she looked severely sunburnt.

“Unfortunately”, Edward spoke up from where he had finished fake gagging.

“He’s just being dramatic,” Alice spoke up, trying to comfort Mitsuko. “I’m sure what you were thinking wasn’t that bad.”

Edward started gagging again.

“Will you stop that, Edward?” Rosalie yelled at her adoptive brother, “God, you are always so fucking annoying.”

“Hello, teenage vampire going through a crisis here.” Hoshiko waved to the group, causing them to quieten down. “Could we please get back on topic?”

Mitsuko blinked to rewire her brain. “Sorry, you’re right.” She spoke, turning to Carlisle once more, “What exactly is the plan here?”

Before he spoke this time, Carlisle turned to Esme, waiting for her to nod and then stepping forward, “We’re willing to offer you a place in our family. You’d stay with us and learn to control your lust for blood, but we would expect you to follow our diet.”

She tilted her head in confusion, “What’s that?”

“We don’t drink human blood and hunt animals instead.” He clarified.

“I’m okay with that,” She agreed immediately, a haunted look appearing on her face. “The things I saw when I first woke up… well, I’d rather not talk about it.”

“We’ve all been in similar situations, Hoshiko; we understand,” Esme spoke, stepping forward, only turning back to reassure Carlisle, who had instinctually reached out to pull her back. Walking forwards until she was in front of Hoshiko, “In time, if you like, we can talk about it together.”

If she could cry, the younger Tanaka would have tears brimming in her eyes, “That would be nice.”

Ever the maternal figure, Esme didn’t hesitate before pulling Hoshiko into her arms and hugging her with nearly all her strength. The fledgling vampire could have sworn her now-diamond skin creaked from how hard she was hugging her, yet she could not help but lean in further into the embrace.

Still standing in Jasper’s arms, Mitsuko couldn’t help as the tears flowed; they were both her own and on behalf of her sister. She felt a jumble of emotions in that moment: sadness, confusion, relief and happiness. Yet as seconds went by, she felt an overwhelming sense of calm through her, and clarity hit her. Turning around one more time, she looked intently into Jasper’s golden eyes.

“It’s been you the whole time, hasn’t it?”

Jasper seemed hesitant to explain, “I can control people’s emotions, but I’ve only ever used it on you as a way to calm you.”

“I’m not mad.” She responded instantly, leaning further into him, “But could you ask me for permission next time?”

“Oh,” he said, surprised by her response, “Of course, if that’s what you want me to do.”

Mitsuko nodded before turning back to look at her sister as her small smile drooped into a frown. Jasper stepped around and looked at her from the side. “What’s wrong?”

“Will I ever be able to be near my sister again?” She whispered to him in hopes he would be the only one to hear.

Yet it seemed since she was in the know about vampires, the Cullens had decided to drop all pretences. From the complete other side of the large circle the group had formed, Edward decided to speak up, “It might be for the best.”

“What kind of suggestion is that?” She yelled out once more, stepping forward; this time Jasper decided to let her go. “She’s my sister; you can’t just expect me to abandon her!”

“She’s a newborn,” Edward hissed at her as he stepped forward. “She’s at the strongest but most uncontrollable she will be as a vampire.”

Yet, Mitsuko wasn’t one to be pushed around, so she stepped closer. “We’re sisters; we’d never hurt each other.”

“It would take much; it wouldn’t even have to be on purpose.” Edward pushed closer, now fully encroaching on her space. “I mean, it wouldn’t even take me a second to kill you. Think what a newborn at full strength could do.”

Within a millisecond, Jasper was at Mitsuko's side, pulling her behind him as he growled furiously at Edward, “Who do you think you’re threatening?”

At the same time, Hoshiko yelled out, “Back away from my sister, arsehole!”

He stood his ground for a moment longer before the rapidly darkening look on Jasper’s face made him back away, but not before speaking again. “She needs to understand how dangerous this is.”

“I think she’s already well aware of that.” The blonde spoke in a dangerously measured tone, “Or are you forgetting what she’s already been through?”

Feeling overshadowed in the conversation, Mitsuko leaned around Jasper slightly to emphasise, “Not that it’ll work anyway.” Before she was gently pushed back again.

Edward continued to stare at Jasper for a moment longer, his eyes flicking to Mitsuko behind him, to which she decided to flip him off. By this point it was clear that the tension would not be diffused by any three of them, so Carlisle stepped forward.

“That’s enough,” he spoke firmly, but his face remained soft. “We have larger issues at hand; I see no reason for Hoshiko and Mitsuko to spend time together so long as one of us supervises.”

“Carlisle”. Edward pushed back at his creator.

“We welcomed Bella with open arms into this family.” He responded instead, “ I expect you to do the same for Mitsuko.”

“You can just call me Suki!” She called out from behind Jasper again, earning a bewildered smile from Carlisle before he spoke again.

“I expect you to do the same for Suki.” The girl in question smiled widely at his correction.

It was a moment before Edward finally conceded with a forced, “Fine.” Before he turned around and ran deep into the woods.

“Where the hell is he going?” Hoshiko asked with a confused tone.

“Probably to visit Bella,” Esme explained, “He stays with her most nights.”

Once Jasper deemed Edward far enough away, he turned around and lifted Mitsuko’s chin up so she was looking at him. “Are you okay there, darling?”

She was awestruck by his touch; his presence was so overwhelming to her, but all she wanted to do was step closer and breathe him in. Instead, her body shook from the cold, and she let out a small yawn. After sighing slightly at the fact she ruined a potential moment, she spoke, her voice quiet and clearly drained, “Tired.”

Jasper smiled again. She’d liked it when he smiled, especially when he smiled at her. God, she was tired.

“Yeah, I think we should get you home.” He spoke, reaching forward to place his hand against her forehead, and Mitsuko leaned forward into his freezing touch instantly.

“You’re so cold,” she shivered, yet before he pulled away, she reached forward and grabbed his hand. “No, no, no, it’s nice... you feel so nice."

Before she could run her mouth anymore, Jasper wrapped his arms around her before hoisting her up and carrying her back towards the silver car. "Right, let's get you in the car."

"M'kay," she said as she burrowed further into his chest and closed her eyes, sleep quickly taking over.

Carefully, Jasper opened the door to the car and was able to settle her in the front passenger seat. After making sure she was buckled in and draping his jacket over her sleeping form, he took his place in the driver's seat.

Before he could pull away, though, a knock on the window caused him to turn and come face to face with Hoshiko’s suspicious glare. With a neutral expression, Jasper rolled down the window and simply stared.

“I need you to promise me something,” she said firmly, before her face softened, “Take care of my sister.”

He answered without hesitation, “Always.”

When Snow Falls | F.O

Back to Masterlist | Next Chapter Chapter 1. The Opening Ball

Summery: Valeria is forced to attend the 73rd Hunger Games' Opening Ball, maybe a certain blue eyed victor will make her a little happier she came.

TW: Attempted SA, Threats, Referenced SA

----------------------------------------------------

It was the beginning of the 73rd Hunger Games, which also meant that today was the annual opening ball held before the Reapings occur. The highest in Capitol society attended, as did many previous victors; and by requirement, so did Valeria Snow.

As she walked through the ballroom doors, she immediately felt out of depth. She didn't normally attend these events; as a result, she had no idea what to do at them. She wasn't interested in the gossip of the Capitol's upper class, and she had nothing in common with any in attendance.

For quite some time she stood to the side of the grand room, close to the corner. She observed those around her and noticed that despite their extreme dresses and makeup, none of them actually stood out. They all just blended together as a kaleidoscope of fabrics and powder.

As Valeria stood there, she remembered the words her father had spoken to her during her dress fitting.

"I want you to actually speak to people tonight," he'd said firmly, "It's about time you made friends with people of your own stature."

Except, despite being a member of such a high-born family, she never enjoyed the company of her peers. Growing up, she always hated the attention she got just from her name being read out in every class she ever took.

Now she was of age; however, the attention now came from men who wanted the fame that came from marrying into the Snow family. It was why she avoided these events like the plague; those types of people practically filled the entire room.

She glanced hopefully over at the victor's table, only for her expression to fall when she realised Wattson wasn't in attendance. Without him there, she wouldn't dare approach them; the last time she attempted to speak with the others, they'd been polite, but it was clear they didn't want her near them. Her surname likely drew them away, although she wouldn't be surprised if her grandfather had warned them to stay away.

"What's a girl dressed like that doing without a line of men?" She turned to see Cinna; he'd designed the dress she was wearing. The older stylist had been working closely with Valeria since she was eighteen, but she knew deep down his true desire was to style for the games, to be able to make a real statement.

He'd done a phenomenal job. She was dressed in an elegant peach ball gown with a sweetheart neckline and draping sleeves, but the most unique feature was the waterfall of pink and white roses that cascaded down from the bodice to the skirt.

"Cinna, oh, I am so glad to see you!" She embraced him, careful not to cause any damage to the dress. "I'm sorry; I'm just not great at these things."

"Oh, don't worry, darling; I know this isn't your kind of scene."

"You're right about that. God, how do people do this?"

Cinna simply laughed in response before whispering, "I guess some people are better at pretending than others are."

"You could say that again."

"If you ever want to escape, I'll cover for you; just don't hurt the dress," he whispered before winking and walking away.

Valeria smiled to herself as she watched Cinna stroll away to speak to a group of stylists that had gathered to inspect each attendee's dresses. She let out a sigh as her eyes continued to wander from the stylists around the room inspecting each group to find a fit somewhere. Her friends didn't go to these events, and her grandfather had told her that she couldn't just rely on those she already knew; he wanted her to make connections.

She took a breath before walking further into the ballroom and moving towards a small group of women, their bodies covered in bright fabrics, several even covered their faces in various equally vibrant masks. One of the women noticed her moving towards them and whispered to the others before standing straighter than a flagpole and turning towards Valeria.

"Oh my dear, it's so lovely you could join us tonight."

Valeria remembered the girl in her academy, Slykie Moss, or 'Killy', as her friends liked to call her. She spoke like she knew Valeria personally, yet they'd never so much as glanced at each other before. Nevertheless, she replied as politely as she could, "Oh, well, it's my pleasure. Whoever planned this has done a wonderful job. It's beautiful."

"Oh, Alicia planned it!" She exclaimed, reaching behind her to pull the girl with midnight black hair forward. "This is Alicia Crane; you may have heard of her. Her brother's the head gamemaker this year. Can you believe it?"

"It's definitely incredible for them. You must be very proud of your brother."

"Ah yes, he's the pride of the family now," Alicia stated with her chin raised in the air before leaning and whispering to the group. "Now I'm not supposed to say this, but he's got some positively nefarious tricks for this year's games."

Excited giggles spread through the group while Valeria simply smiled awkwardly. She never understood why, but she never got the same excitement from the games others in the Capitol did. At least not after becoming close to Wattson.

Wattson Stein was the victor of the 64th Hunger Games, and four years ago on Valeria's eighteenth birthday, she had saved his life. Feeling a sense of duty for the victor, Valeria checked on him almost every day for three months afterwards. They'd become close friends ever since, although only in secret.

Now every time she watched the games, she couldn't help but picture her friend's sixteen-year-old self taking each tribute's place. So young and thrust into a game of death and fear.

"Oh Valeria, my dear, you must tell me, are the rumours true? You're District Four's newest escort?" Ophelia asked, breaking Valeria from her thoughts.

"Um... yes, it's true." She replied, "I'm very excited; I've never had the chance to visit Four before."

A woman with neon green hair scrunched her face in disgust before speaking, "Eugh, I imagine it smells like nothing but fish."

"Oh goodness, yes," Sylkie agreed with her friend. "Plus, I've heard the sea air is absolutely terrible for your hair."

"Well, I'm not so bad," Valeria tried to advocate on District 4's behalf. "After all, Finnick Odair is from there."

"Are you ladies gossiping about me?" A voice from behind her called, causing her to turn around. There was Finnick, the 'Capitol Darling', in all his glory. His stylist had surprisingly dressed him this time; instead of something outrageously revealing, he wore a suit similar to that of other capital attendees. It was a dark blue with intricate silver embroidery of waves crashing against a rockside, and the buttons were in the shape of silver seashells.

Behind her she heard the women whisper rapidly to one another, followed swiftly by high-pitched giggles. Ignoring them, Valeria took the initiative, and after a deep breath, stepped forward and greeted the victor, "Hello, Finnick, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm-"

"Valeria Snow," he interrupted, "Believe me, I'm aware of who you are."

Stepping in front of Finnick's view, almost blocking Valeria entirely, Sylkie excitedly asked Finance, "Are you aware she's District 4's newest escort for this year?"

"Well, what an honour it will be to have the Capitol princess visit my district." Finnick replied, a smirk spreading widely across his face; he then stepped around Sylkie carefully so he was facing Valerie once more.

In that moment as her golden brown eyes connected with Finnick's own ocean blue, Valeira couldn't help but inhale sharply. She'd never been this close to District 4's youngest victor before, and he was certainly striking.

His sandy blonde hair had been left reasonably untouched, allowing for his soft curls to frame his lightly tanned face. If Valeria could describe him, it would be the ocean personified.

As she continued to take in his appearance, Valeria's eyes moved back to focus on his face, more specifically his expression. His left eyebrow was raised slightly in a way that showed he was expecting something. It was only then that she realised he had spoken to her again, and she hadn't heard a single thing he said.

"Sorry?" She asked, cursing the heat in her cheeks, and a blush spread across her face.

Finnick chuckled slightly at her before repeating himself, "I said you look very pretty this evening."

Valeria knew he was simply being polite and his usual flirtatious self, but she still uttered a simple "Thank you" and smiled brightly. She was happy someone thought she looked good, especially since it was Cinna that had styled her.

"I suppose it would be wrong to compliment a lady and not ask her to dance."

The blonde raised her head to look at him in surprise to find his hand outstretched towards her. "You want to dance with me?" She couldn't help but ask; after all, she and Finnick had attended many of the same parties, and never before had he so much as spoken to her.

"Well, we will be getting to know each other a lot over the next few months; it seems only right," Finnick reasoned before tilting his head in a teasing expression, "You do know how to dance, right?"

"Yes, of course I know how to dance."

"Good," he said before grabbing her hand and leading her to the centre of the room. "So long as you don't step on my feet, we'll be just fine."

Finnick placed his hand on the small of her back, pulling her closer to him. In turn, Valeria moved her hand upwards towards his shoulder. They began a slow and gentle waltz to music softly playing; they glided across the floor and between the other couples. Valeria found it difficult to look anywhere but at Finnick; they were close enough to feel the breath of the other on their skin.

"Are you really excited to see four?" Finnick said so after a few minutes of them dancing in silence.

Valeria narrowed her eyes in suspicion, "How long were you eavesdropping on the conversation?"

"Long enough," he responded simply before pulling away and raising his left arm to gently twirl her around. Valeria couldn't help but giggle as her hair swished around her face before Finnick pulled her close once more. "Now are you going to answer my question?"

"Well, I've never seen the sea or even a beach, at least not a real one."

Finnick laughed before speaking, "So you became my district's escort because you wanted to see the beach?"

"No!" Valeria exclaimed, "I just... actually, can you keep a secret?"

"Princess, that's exactly what I deal in."

"Really?" She leaned back slightly to look up at him more clearly. "Seems like a bad business model."

"You'd be surprised at how much secrets are worth." Finnick answered vaguely with an air of mystery, as if he knew more than even Valeria about the underbelly of the Capitol.

"Capitol has lots of those," she couldn't help but murmur under her breath.

"Huh," Finnick laughed.

"What?"

"You're just..." he paused as he thought on what to say, "not exactly what I expected."

Valeria hummed in response before looking directly in his eyes, "And what did you expect?"

"Well, I don't think I should really tell you the truth." Finnick, he responded after a long minute of thought; it was clear on his face that he was being genuine.

Leaning slightly closer, Valeria whispered into his ear, "I thought we were sharing secrets, Odair."

He winked before continuing, "You've yet to tell me this big secret of yours."

"Oh right, I became an escort becau-" Valeria was able to continue as she was suddenly pulled away from Finnick, only to be faced with a clearly angry Johanna.

"Just what the fuck do you think you are doing?" She refused to release Valeria's wrist, holding her in place.

"I'm sorry, we were just dancing..." She was confused; why was it such an issue to dance with Finnick? She'd seen him dance many times before at other events with several women.

"Don't play dumb with me; you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Johanna, stop." Finnick began to step in to try to pull her away. "You know who she is; this is only going to end badly—"

"No Finnick, who she is, is exactly my problem." She was continuously glaring at the girl opposite her. "They're all the same."

While Johanna and Finnick continued their exchange, the latter now whispering harshly to the District 7 victor, Valeria looked around and realised that all eyes were on her. The women she had spoken to just minutes before were smirking at her embarrassment and had begun to whisper to each other. Another glance, and she found the other victors looking at her with the same hatred she saw in Johanna's eyes. She continued to look around as her breath slowly left her, as the sound began to fade out until there was only a dull buzzing.

This feeling was building and building, and it was only when she felt the tears begin to well that she suddenly moved into action. With a strength completely unknown to her, Valeria wrenched her hand from the victor's grasp and sprinted out the ballroom's door.

She ran from the ballroom, needing peace to think after the accusation from Johanna, the glares of the other tributes, and the whispers of the crowds. She still didn't understand what had occurred or even why.

She moved quickly to the other side of the manor she was in, finding a sitting room that was empty. She closed the door behind her before moving to the glass doors on the opposite side of the room; it led to one of the smaller balconies that looked out onto the manor's extravagant gardens. Despite being one of the most famous people attending tonight, she couldn't have been more alone as she leaned over the small balcony. No one would bother her here, and she was far enough from the ballroom that she could no longer hear the music.

God, she hated the Capitol; if she could, she'd move far away. As she stared into the night sky, the stars barely visible from the various lights throughout the Capitol, she thought of her childhood dream of moving from Panem to have a peaceful life for her and her siblings and never having to attend a ball like this again.

Behind her the door to the balcony creaked open, and Valeria quickly turned to see who it was; it was an older man, likely a friend of her father's. His bright pink hair was gelled back, and his equally pink moustache was finely groomed; the only thing out of place was the opened and half-empty bottle in his hand. He stumbled onto the balcony, squinting as he looked around; it didn't seem he had noticed she was there, and Valeria was planning to quickly move away until he suddenly locked his eyes onto her.

"Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes? What is a fine lady like yourself doing so far from the party?"

"I'm sorry?" She exclaimed in disgust, Not only was this man drunk enough that Valeria could smell him from across the balcony, but he was clearly over double her age, possibly even older than her father.

"Oh, don't be like that, dear." He smiled widely before approaching her. "A girl dressed like that is asking for at least a little attention."

Whether he didn't recognise who she was or simply didn't care, this strange man made his intention very clear through that one sentence, and Valeria instantly felt a sense of fear wash over her. Trying to diffuse the situation, she simply smiled politely and responded, "Well, apologies, but it's not the kind of attention I think you're offering."

"Hmm, I like them feisty; please keep talking."

"Sorry, but I think someone is looking for me, so we're done here." Valeria tried to move around the man to exit the balcony, but he suddenly grabbed her arm and pushed her against the balcony rail.

"What do you think you're doing?" She tried to push him away, but he held her firmly in place.

"Now I wouldn't fight too hard if I were you." He moved his hand towards her neck to hold her in place, forcing her to look at him. "See, I was a peacekeeper back in my prime, and I've seen plenty of pretty girls like you out in the districts, so I know what to do when a pretty little thing puts up a fight."

"My grandfather is President Snow... Touch me and... you'll regret it..."

He just laughed into her face; the smell of alcohol was making her feel sick. His other hand was wrapped around her waist, squeezing her tightly. She couldn't breathe, and her mind was starting to shut down. There didn't seem to be a way out of this. As he leaned in to whisper in her ear, his hand on her neck was slowly moving down. "Don't worry; it won't hurt after a while."

He grabbed her dress by the front and pulled, ripping her bodice down the middle and revealing her undergarments. She never felt more naked as the cold air chilled her exposed body and tears streamed down her face. She moved her hand in front of her and tried to push him away, but he was stronger than she was and moved to restrain her arms. With her hands restrained behind her, she decided to close her eyes, afraid to see what would happen to her.

It was then Valeria felt a rush of air as the pressure against her body was pulled away from her; she heard a scuffle before she opened her eyes. It was Finnick who had pulled that man away from her and had seemingly knocked him out with the lamp he still held in his hand.

"Finnick?" She spoke in a hoarse voice, her throat still sore from being gripped so hard.

He turned to look at her before placing the lamp back down on the small table. He began to walk towards her but quickly stopped. "Are you okay?" He asked.

"H-how did you..." She began to question, looking back down at the pink-haired man now laid prone on the floor. "W-hat?"

"Valeria," he spoke firmly, making her eyes focus on him once again, "I need to know if you're okay."

"Yeah... I'm okay," Valeria responded, stunned hearing him say her name, "Thank you for... doing that."

"It's fine." They were both out of breath from the surge of adrenaline. Valeria quickly realised her chest was still exposed and moved her arms in front of her. Finnick slowly moved his way towards her.

"Do you want my jacket?" He had already taken it off and was holding it towards her. She took it from his grasp slowly before pushing her arms in and holding it tight to cover her chest.

"Thank you so much." She smiled at him softly before looking down at her dress, and her lips moved to frown.

"What's wrong?" He asked, concerned.

"He ruined Cinna's dress, and I thought it was so beautiful. What am I going to tell him?" Her voice was high-pitched, almost a whine, and she desperately tried to bring the fabric of her corset back together again.

For a moment Finnick was silent as a stunned expression crossed his face before it fell into a look of genuine kindness. "I'm sure he'll be more than understanding."

"You think?"

He smiled softly and nodded, "Yeah, I think so?"

Valeria smiled before looking to her left and seeing that man still unconscious on the floor; her anxiety began to creep up again, afraid that he may wake up suddenly.

"Do you want to come with me?" Finnick spoke up as if sensing her growing anxiety. Turning back to him, Valeria noticed he was watching her carefully.

"Where?" She sniffed out before wiping tears from her eyes.

He took another step closer, holding his hand out for her to take. "Just away from here, we can find another empty room to sit in."

"But you'll miss the party."

"Believe me, that'll be a blessing." He smiled softly at her, which she returned in kind. She took the hand that he held out towards her and allowed him to lead her out of the room.

They moved further down the hall until what they both agreed was a long enough distance and opened the door closest, which, luckily, led to an empty room. It was a simple sitting room similar to the one before, only this one didn't have any balcony attached. Two ornate sofas faced each other, which Finnick and Valeria chose to sit on. As they faced each other, they began to relax, and they sat contently in the other's presence.

"Why did..." She trailed off, thinking carefully about her question.

"Why did I help you?" Finnick finished her thought for her.

"Yes"

"I'm not a monster, Valeria," he muttered to her, "and you don't deserve that... no one does."

"Well, thank you; I think you probably saved my life."

"Don't mention it." He smiled softly before changing to a look of mock sternness. "Where were your guards, anyway?"

"My what?"

"Guards. Would've thought the president's precious grandchild would have some kind of protection."

"I requested not to have any tonight. I find it a bit suffocating, having someone breathing down your neck the whole night," Valeria responded before looking down in embarrassment, "Although I can see now that was a bad idea."

Finnick couldn't help but let out a sarcastic chuckle, "You might be right about that." And then his face suddenly grew serious, "Don't do that again."

Caught off guard by his intensity, Valeria struggled to form a sentence before blurting out, "Why do you care what I do?"

He seemed genuinely stunned by her impulsive question, as if he didn't understand why she asked it in the first place. Shaking his head, Finnick schooled his expression and shrugged, "You're better than Four's last escort; if anything happens to you, who knows who I'd be stuck with next?"

"Careful," she responded sarcastically, "someone might think you actually like me."

"Oh, we don't have to worry about that, Miss Snow." He replied equally as sarcastic as the blonde sitting in front of him.

"Just call me Valeria." She responded quickly, looking him dead in his bright blue eyes.

Instead of looking away from her intense eye contact, Finnick leant forward, bringing their faces closer together, his eyes never moving from hers. "Alright, Valeria, you can call me Finnick."

"I was already doing that."

"Well, now you have my permission." After he spoke, he smiled again, but it wasn't a bright smile like all the others he made that night; this was different. Valeria would even dare to think it seemed genuine.

It was that moment Valeria realised that the Finnick she knew was never real; like most things in the Capitol, it was perfectly crafted to appease a specific audience. She also realised that she liked the version of Finnick she was seeing; he seemed brighter. If she thought he shone on cameras before, he was like the sun now.

A few moments later the spell was broken when the doors to the room Finnick had hidden her away in slammed open. The Victor stood at the loud sound and instinctively moved so he stood in front of Valeria, who was still sitting on the couch, staring wide-eyed at the now open door.

"Where in God's name have you been?" The man said immediately as he stepped further into the room.

Breaking out of her shock, Valeria quickly stood from her seat and moved around Finnick. The Victor began to move again to block her movements, causing her to speak up, "It's fine, Finnick; this is Blaze, one of my family's bodyguards."

"You were told to stay inside the ballroom." Blaze began to rant at Valeria furiously, "How is it your younger siblings can follow instructions but you evidently can't?"

She spluttered slightly at his words, trying to figure out what to say before deciding to be defensive. "Are you allowed to speak to me that way?"

"I've known you since you were still in diapers and shuffling around on your butt; I've put up with your antics far too long to care about how I should speak to you." His face remained serious, but the left corner of his mouth twitched slightly, which was as close to a smile as Valeria would ever get.

"You make a good point." Valeria sighed, "Are we leaving now? Is that why you came for me?"

"Yeah, the car's waiting outside for us, and it's getting pretty late."

She turned to her left where Finnick was standing. "You need a lift home at all?"

"Oh" He seemed surprised at her offer, breaking his eye focus on analysing the stranger in front of him. "I'm alright, but thank you."

"Are you sure? I can ask them to stop by your apartment or wherever you're staying." She pressed further, feeling a sense of responsibility for the man who'd saved her less than an hour earlier.

Finnick smiled gratefully at her before nodding, "Yeah, don't worry; I have an appointment to go to anyway."

That made Valeria's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "It's almost ten o'clock; isn't that a bit late to have an appointment?"

Instead of answering her question, Finnick swallowed nervously as his expression darkened for a fraction of a second before softening again. "You should get home; you must be tired."

She tried to protest as Finnick stepped away from her, allowing for Blaze to grasp her arm and escort her out of the room. Turning back around as she crossed the doorway, her eyes focused on his own for as long as she could.

As Blaze led Valeria down the halls and into the sleek white car waiting in front of the front steps, her thoughts raced as she played back her entire interaction with Finnick, from their first dance to sitting next to each other in a small side room.

Back in that small side room, Finnick was still standing where Valeria had left him. It seemed that his mind was still catching up to what had just happened. Did he really just spend a night with President Snow's granddaughter?

Not only did he spend a night with her, but somehow within that one night Valeria had managed to shift his entire perception of her on its head. His mind then focused on her golden curls, how they gently fell from her shoulder in a waterfall, and how they faintly smelt of roses. In fact, Valeria smelt entirely of roses.

This time a knock on the door broke him from his thoughts, and he glanced up to find Alicia Crane leaning against it, looking at him with deep desire.

"I've been looking for you, Odair." She said in a sickly sultry tone, "You promised me a night of passion, so let's not waste any more time."

With a subtle resigned sigh, he plastered his trademark dazzling smile on and followed her out of the room.

Back outside, Valeria was fully settled in the car and was now staring out the window as it set off. Yet, even as they went separate ways, both knew that this night was the most memorable night they'd ever lived in the Capitol.

Sunrise | Twilight J.H

Back to Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter 5. Minor Complications

Mitsuko had been in the hospital for three more days before Dr. Cullen finally came in with the good news: she was going home.

Yet when Charlie walked through the door to collect her instead of her mom, her relief quickly turned into an uncertain sense of fear. As they walked down the hallway together, several nurses stopped what they were doing and looked at her in sympathy.

Surely nurses would look more relieved than sympathetic when a patient has been deemed healthy enough to leave? At least that's what Mitsuko thought.

It was worse when she got home. Her mom was home; her car was in the driveway, which meant she could've come to get her, but for some reason she didn't.

Charlie guided her into her house and straight into the living room, where her mother was sitting, but she wasn't alone. In the room, sitting on the opposite couch from where her mom was sitting, were two other officers. One of them had a notebook open with several lines of writing on its pages, but Mitsuko was too far away to see clearly what it said.

Her steps slowed until she halted just at the entryway of the living room; she looked around cautiously as she spoke, "What's going on?"

As she spoke, all heads moved to where she was standing; Charlie moved past her before turning back to her with a strange expression on his face, "Why don't you take a seat, kid?"

"No," she refused. "Just tell me what's going on!"

It was at this moment her mom stood and took a step towards her: "It's Hoshi."

The pit in her stomach grew. "What about Hoshi?"

"She left three days ago, said she was having a sleepover," her mom explained, choking up slightly as she spoke, "but she hasn't come home, and the girl she said she was staying with hasn't seen Hoshi since Monday last week."

The room grew silent as they awaited Mitsuko's reaction to the news, but she found herself frozen, unable to speak or even move her face. Concerned, her mom stepped forward and grabbed onto her arm, shaking her slightly to get her attention. "Miko, honey, do you understand what I told you?"

She shook herself slightly before finally responding, "Hoshi's gone missing?"

"I'm afraid so, kid," Charlie chimed in. "We've got officers canvassing the area, and we're also in touch with Seattle police in case she's ended up there."

Seattle. Of course.

At the mention of the city, Mitsuko's eyes shined with recognition. She thought back to the conversation she had those three days ago in the hospital room. Hoshi had promised she wouldn't do anything without her sister, but Mitsuko had forgotten how stubborn her little sister could be.

All she could do in that moment was slowly nod her head before speaking with a slight tremble, "I'm... going to head to my room."

She began walking away, only turning around when her mom called after her, "I just need some time to process... this."

Turning back around, she climbed the stairs and made her way into her room. Where she stayed for nearly two full days. After the second day, Angela and Jess had come to visit her, having heard the news and wanting to check on her.

Instead of seeing the usual smiling face, the two were greeted by the sight of Mitsuko staring intently at a map of Seattle she'd pulled up on her computer.

"Suki?" Angela had called in an attempt to get her attention, "Everyone's really worried about you; your mom says you haven't come out in two days."

When that didn't get a response, Jessica sighed and stomped over and yanked the computer's power cord from the wall. "Seriously, Suki, this isn't going to help anyone!"

That seemed to have gotten a reaction from Mitsuko, who twisted her head to face her friends with a dark expression.

"What do you want me to do, Jess?" Her eyes quickly filling with tears as her face crumbled. "I can't act like nothing has happened; she's gone!"

"We're not asking you to do that!" Jess argued back, "But we both know Hoshi wouldn't want you torturing yourself over trying to find her."

"I'm just so afraid she'll end up like..." She couldn't finish that sentence, but it was clear her friends understood at least to some degree. Yet they'd never understand just how much she didn't want Riley and Hoshiko to share the same fate.

"You shouldn't think like that." Jess chastised her again, "The investigation is still ongoing; for all we know, she's run off to watch one of those bands she likes so much on tour."

It was so like Jess to think that way; there was always a best-case scenario that she would remind people of. Maybe it was because she hadn't experienced much hardship, or maybe that was the only way Jess knew how to comfort her friends.

"Maybe you're right," Mitusko finally admitted, "I just can't stand the thought of her being alone and hurt somewhere."

Angela stepped forward again, pulling her friend into a tight hug. "We know, but we, as your friends, have a responsibility to make sure you're okay."

All she could do was nod before burying her face into her friend's shoulder. They stayed like that for a few minutes, with Jess eventually joining in and making it a group hug. After a while they pulled away, and Angela gently reached out to wipe away her friend's tears.

"How about we have a nice night in and watch a cheesy chick flick?" She suggested, to which Mitsuko smiled softly and nodded.

The three of them spent the night curled up on Mitsuko's bed as Legally Blonde played on the small TV in her room. When the movie had finished, it was already dark, so Angela and Jess bid their friend goodbye and left.

With her friends gone, the silence became suffocating once again, but the presence of her friends had helped heal at least a little bit of the damage in Mitsuko's heart.

She'd finally crawled out of bed to have a quick shower, groan in pleasure from finally feeling clean again. With her hair still wet, she'd then thrown her pyjamas on and shuffled back under the covers. After only a few minutes, she felt herself drifting off in a deep slumber.

Knock knock knock

Mitsuko's eyes flew open at the sound of the furious banging against her bedroom window. Disoriented, she glanced at the clock on her bedside table to see it read 3:46 am.

Thinking it was just the branches of the tree outside hitting against the glass, she simply pulled the cover over her tighter and closed her eyes. Thankfully she was tired enough that it didn't take long for her to begin drifting again.

Knock knock knock

The banging continued, but it seemed to be getting louder and more frequent. This time she sat up and reached over to flick on her bedside lamp. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust before she could stand and slowly approach her window. It was too dark for her to see what was outside, so all she could do was unlatch it and swing it open.

The moment she did, she was almost knocked to the ground when a large body jumped in through the now open window. Before she could shout in alarm, a cold hand covered a mouth, followed by a harsh hiss.

"Shhh," The voice whispered, "It's me, Suki. It's just me."

Her eyes focused on the face in front of her, and her breath hitched in surprise. She tried to speak but was muffled under the hand on her mouth. "Hoshi?"

"If I move my hand away, you're not going to scream, are you?" Her sister asked, to which all she could do was nod.

The hand was slowly removed from her mouth as Hoshiko took a step away, keeping what she deemed a safe distance from her older sister. The distance also allowed Mitsuko to fully take in her sister's appearance.

Although she looked similar to how she did only a few days ago, she was also somehow completely unrecognisable. Yet the thing that stuck out the most, the thing that made the pit settle back in Mitsuko's stomach, was her eyes. The once dark brown, almost pitch black, was gone, replaced by a startling crimson red. Just like Riley's.

"What happened to you?" Was all she could say, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

"I don't know..." Hoshiko muttered, even her voice was different, "It's all just like a blur; one moment I'm talking to you in the hospital, and the next I'm... burning."

She bit her lip from her nerves before speaking again, "Hoshi, your eyes are..."

"I know..." her sister spoke, "I saw them in a mirror, not long after I woke up."

The expression of absolute confusion and defeat on her sister's face made Mitsuko's heart ache once more. Without thinking, she took several rapid steps forward before pulling her little sister into her arms.

"Fuck..." She couldn't help but cry out when the rock-hard body slammed into her, "Sorry, you're like a boulder."

"Yeah, sorry about that." Her sister rested her head on her shoulder but kept her hands at her side, not trusting her newfound strength. "Turns out I'm like super strong or something now."

Mitsuko pulled back from the hug to look at her sister once more. "How did you even get back here?"

"I ran." Was all Hoshiko willing to say at the moment, "I think I have super speed too."

"Are you saying you've turned into some kind of superhero or something?"

"I think mutant might be a more accurate description." Hoshiko joked, a small smile on her face.

"Shit." The oldest said, looking down with a stressed expression, her hands going to rest on her hips.

"Yeah, I know." She sighed, running her hand through her hair. "But I think with some practice, I can learn to control it.

Instead of agreeing, Mitsuko shook her head before speaking again, "No, I mean how are we gonna tell Mom about this?"

Pause.

"Shit."

Sunrise | Twilight J.H

Back to Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter 4. A Sisterly Agreement

When she reopened her eyes, the first thing she did was immediately close them again, too blinded by the fluorescent lights above her. Mitsuko groaned as she tried to lift her hand to rub her face, quickly becoming confused when she felt resistance.

Slowly opening her eyes, she realised she wasn't at home in her own bed; in fact, she had no idea where she was. Alarmed, she tried to sit up but winced when a burning pain spread from her shoulder through the rest of her body.

Before panic could fully set in, she was able to turn her head and spot her sister sitting at her bedside. Hoshiko was busy looking at something on her phone, so she hadn't yet realised that Mitsuko was awake.

“H-hoshi?” She tried to speak, but she found herself struggling to speak. “What’s... What's going on?”

Hoshiko looked up from her phone at the sound of her sister's voice. Jumping out of her chair, she was quickly by Mitsuko’s side. “Oh my god, you scared us so much.”

“Am I in the hospital?” She asked as she continued looking around rapidly. When looked down, she realised the resistance she felt was from all the tubing connected from her hand to an IV.

Her sister nodded before explaining, “You got attacked by some kind of animal, lost a lot of blood; we thought you were going to die.”

As her sister spoke, a flash of red eyes appeared in Mitsuko's mind, and an overwhelming sense of fear settled in her stomach. “Riley… I saw Riley.”

“What?” Her little sister pulled away from her slightly, looking at her with a confused expression.

“He was there!” She exclaimed as the heart monitor’s beeps began to grow louder and faster slightly.

Hoshiko began to gently stroke her sister’s hair as she whispered in attempts to calm her down, “Hey, it’s okay; if you saw him, I believe you.”

The two sisters were silent for a moment, broken when Mitsuko suddenly turned to Hoshiko with wide eyes as she spoke.

“I think it was him…”

“What do you mean?” Her sister’s brow furrowed with confusion, eyes full of concern for a sister’s well-being.

“I think Riley… attacked me.” She whispered to her sister, afraid that someone would overhear them. Her mind was still going back to that night; Riley looked so different than the last time they’d been together. He seemed colder and more dangerous, two words that Mitsuko never thought she’d use to describe someone she’d known her whole life.

“Suki, what are you talking—“ Before Hoshiko could finish her question, the doors opened, and Dr. Cullen walked into the room flanked by two nurses.

Upon seeing that she was awake, the two nurses began to flutter about the room, checking her chart and adjusting her IV. Carlisle stepped closer to her bed and spoke softly, “Miss Tanaka, it’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling?”

“I feel fine, just a little sore is all.” She said simply, before continuing, “When can I go home?”

“I want to keep you in just for a few more days just for observations; if all goes well, I’ll be happy to discharge you.” He said as he grabbed her chart and began the required checks.

"Your injuries were quite extensive, but I'm happy with how quickly you've been able to recover," he spoke as he carefully shined a small torch in her face, directing her to follow it with her eyes, "and although I did have some concerns about internal bleeding, it seems you got out relatively unscathed, other than the rather nasty wound on your neck."

As he pointed it out, Mitsuko couldn't help but look down as she realised her neck to her shoulder was thickly bandaged, further limiting her movement.

Carlise continued the checks silently, only speaking every now and then to check her pain levels. Mitsuko wasn't in much pain; she was just overcome with a sense of confusion and fear about what had happened that night.

When he checked her right ankle, she let out a sharp hiss as he adjusted it slightly. "Looks like just a sprain," the doctor explained. "Must have happened when you fell; you're lucky that it's not broken."

"Don't exactly feel lucky…" she pessimistically murmured, earning a small slap on the arm from Hosiko, who was still sitting close to her side. "Sorry, I'm just tired.

Dr. Cullen took her attitude in stride, "It's normal to feel this way, especially after a traumatic experience."

Next the nurse carefully lifted her into a sitting position so that Carlise could listen to her heart. As he placed the stethoscope against her, she couldn't help but shiver. Amusingly, she thought his hands felt colder than the metal.

Once Carlise seemed happy with his assessment, he looked at her softly before speaking, “All your friends have been quite worried about you. I imagine you’ll have a lot of visitors these next coming days.”

“Oh gosh,” she exclaimed as she realised where the incident happened, “I ruined the graduation party.”

At her words, Hoshiko jumped forward to grab her face, forcing Mitsuko to look at her. “You didn’t ruin anything; whatever attacked you did.”

“Speaking of which,” the doctor spoke again, causing the two sisters to look at him again, “the police are here to ask a few questions, but only if you’re comfortable, of course.”

“It’s okay…” she replied with a small smile, “You can let them in.”

With that, Carlisle walked out of the room for a few minutes, only to come back followed by Charlie and another partner.

“How you doing, kid?” He asked once he approached her bed, “I know your mom’s been beside herself worrying about ya.”

“Where is she?”

“At work, said she needed to, so she was distracted.” Charlie explained as he looked at her sympathetically. When all she did was nod in understanding, he cleared his throat slightly before speaking, “Do you think you could tell us exactly what happened?”

“I was at the party; erm, I was feeling a bit lightheaded, so I went outside,” she began to explain. “And I don’t know why, but I found myself walking into the woods.”

“Why?” He asked, his face furrowed with clear confusion.

“I don’t know, just like a… feeling, I guess.” She responded before continuing, “Anyway, I ended up in a clearing and…”

Mitsuko paused; as much as she trusted Charlie, she also knew how crazy she would sound. If she told them about Riley, they’d just put it down as a hallucination from grief or something, and the next thing she knows, she’s in the psych ward.

So, she took a breath and lied, “It’s all hazy from there… sorry.”

Charlie nodded in understanding, but next to him, Carlisle had a strange expression on his face. As if he knew there was more to her story, but before she could question it, he was already leading Charlie and his partner out.

"What the hell was that?" A voice broke Mitsuko from her thoughts, and she turned to face her sister. "Why didn't you tell them what you told me?”

"'Cause I know how crazy it sounds." She replied in a hushed whisper, "If I'm going to find out what happened, I think I need to do it alone."

Hoshiko almost laughed at her older sister's sheer audacity, "Absolutely not; if he tried to kill you, there's no way I'm letting you do this alone."

Shaking her head rapidly, she quickly rejected her sister's offer, "No, I'm not letting you put yourself in harm's way."

"You either let me come with you, or I go out those doors and tell everyone what you told me."

As much as she wanted to call out Hoshi's bluff, she knew her sister. If summer camp ten years ago had taught her anything, it's that Hoshi will do anything that she says she will. So with a heavy sigh of resignation, she nodded her head, "Fine, but if anything goes wrong, I told you so.”

Hoshiko nodded in understanding, "So when do we start?"

"Seattle, I think, but not till I get out of here," she said simply. "For now, you have to promise me something..."

"What?"

"Don't do any investigations without me, okay?"

Hoshiko simply rolled her eyes, so she repeated herself, "I'm serious, Hoshi, don't put yourself in danger for me; this could be some massive crime gang or something."

With a small groan she agreed, "Fine, I'll be careful, promise."

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "Now get out of here; you can't stay here all day; besides, you have school tomorrow.”

Before she shooed her sister out of the room, Mitsuko made sure to pull her into a tight hug. Closing her eyes, she savoured the feeling of having her little sister cradled in her arms.

As they pulled away, they looked at each other one more time before Hoshiko finally pulled away, "I'll see you later, oneesan."

"See you later." With that, her sister left the room, leaving Mitsuko in silence.

Left alone with her thoughts, all she could do was think back to that night again. She knew Riley was there; that was a fact she knew. Yet, as she thought more about that night, she still had no idea what made her walk into that clearing in the first place. It was as if her subconscious knew Riely would be there and guided her to him, but why?

"Stop thinking so hard." She whispered to herself in comfort, "Just go to sleep; everything will be fine."

Pulling the covers up, she shuffled further under them and closed her eyes, letting sleep take over her as her mind still raced.

Elsewhere, a young girl with black hair approached the service desk. The woman at the desk acknowledged the girl carefully before asking, "Where'd you need to go, darling?"

The girl paused before finally answering, "Seattle. I need to go to Seattle."

Hoshiko knew she'd be breaking her promise, but if Riley was who Mitsuko saw in the woods, then she needed to find him and quickly. It was only right to start in the city where he vanished.

Hopefully, there she'd find some answers.

Sunrise | Twilight J.H

Back to Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter 3. Deadly Party Crasher

She tried not to think about Riley as much anymore. It had been a month, and the majority for the police had declared it a dead end; only Charlie was still investigating. Mitsuko wished he’d come back, but she knew the chance of that was slim now, and so she tried her best to move on.

Throwing herself into graduation planning and work, she did anything to distract herself. Mitsuko was elated to be finally graduating; as much as she loved her friends, she was excited to have the freedom that high school never gave her. The ceremony was amazing; she smiled brightly as she and her friends threw their caps in the air as several parents took pictures.

Once she’d gone home, she enjoyed a little celebratory meal with her mom and sister. After dinner, she spent some time with Hoshiko, who helped her get ready for the afterparty. She pulled a white blouse with puffy long sleeves from her closet. Pausing for a moment in thought, she turned back to her closet and pulled out a pink corset that had gold and pearl detailing. 

After dressing, she allowed Hoshiko to do her makeup. It was similar to her everyday look, but her sister added some extra shimmer to her eye makeup and highlights. While her makeup was done, she braided half of her hair up and tied it in place. Just as she finished getting ready, she got a text from Jess saying her dad was on his way to pick her up. She stood up and checked herself in the mirror one last time before making her way downstairs.

"You look beautiful!" her mom exclaimed as she made her way downstairs. "Do you have everything you need?"

"Yes, Mom, don't worry; I'll be fine." She reassured her that ever since she learnt about Riley, their mother had been hyperprotective of her two daughters. After sharing a quick goodbye, she ran outside where the car was waiting for her.

Now she found herself drinking from a red plastic cup as music blasted through the Cullens’ woodland house. Although Mitsuko thought that ‘house’ was an understatement, she’d spent some time just wandering around, and while she didn’t go into any of the rooms, she was blown away at the amount of doors alone.

She sighed as one particular Cullen popped into her mind. She hadn’t yet seen Jasper, but she knew he was here; at least he said he would be. Mitsuko presumed he was out on the balcony since she'd seen the rest of the Cullens head that way.

“SUKI!” Jessica yelled towards Mitsuko, breaking her from her thoughts, “COME OVER! MIKE MADE US SHOTS!”

She smiled towards her friend and quickly made her way over, face clear with surprise at the suspiciously neon green shots in front of her. “Mike, what the hell did you make?”

“I actually don’t know, but it does have tequila in…”

“Who cares?” Lauren butted in as she grabbed a glass, “If it’s tequila, I’m drinking.”

The group cheered and followed her lead, each grabbing a glass before clinking the glasses together and each taking a shot. Mitsuko quickly downed her drink, gagging slightly at the strength and sourness of the shot, and then giggled as she watched her friends do the same.

“Mike, what the fuck was that?” Jessica asked her boyfriend, still gagging from the shot. “My throat is burning.”

“Yeah, I think you just gave us pure ethanol.”

“Well, at least my sinuses’ are cleared now.” Angela added, trying to be positive. “Wait, there’s Bella!”

Mitsuko followed behind her friends as they approached the brunette; they each hugged her, which allowed Mitsuko to slide in at the end and pull her into a tight embrace. “Happy graduation, Bella; glad to see you here.”

“Thanks, Suki…” Bella whispered in reply, giving her friend a genuine smile when they pulled away.

“So where’s your boyfriend?” She asked, raising her eyebrow suggestively, earning a mock punch from her friend. Before her friend could reply, Jessica jumped forward to speak to Bella.

“Hey. What did you think of my speech? Too easy-breezy, too self-helpful? You may admit it.”

“No, you pretty much nailed it.” Bella complimented her friend, creating a large smile on Jess’ face.

“Yeah? It's like I was born to lead, right?”

A song began to play, which got Angela's attention. She lit up before turning to her friends, “Oh, great. I love this song; let's go.”

Mitsuko was about to follow her friends, but she noticed Bella hadn’t moved. “You coming, Bella?”

“In a sec, I just need to talk to someone.” Mitsuko noticed her looking at the door where Jacob and two other boys had just entered. She nodded to Bella in understanding before making her way to the dance floor.

Angela pulled her close into a mini group hug with Jessica, all three spinning around together to the music. She danced for a while, sipping on a drink that Mike had passed her. As much as she enjoyed hanging around her friends, she hadn’t seen the Cullens at all, even Jasper, despite his promise.

“I need some air; I’m gonna head outside for a minute.” She turned to Angela, who looked at her in slight concern and offered to come with her, which she had graciously declined.

Mitsuko pushed her way through the crowd and eventually made her way to the front entrance. Stepping outside, she breathed a sigh of relief as she stood by the tree line. “I should probably check on Hoshi,” she murmured to herself before pulling her phone out of her little white bag.

Just as she was about to hit the call button, she heard a strange rustle come from deep within the forest; at first she ignored it, looking back to her phone. Yet, the rustling persisted alongside the strangest whispering as if a voice was calling her name. She didn’t know what came over her, but she found herself walking deeper into the woods in an almost trance-like state.

She continued walking until she found herself in a large clearing and quickly turned her head as a twig snapped, revealing a familiar figure standing on the other side of the clearing.

“Riley?” Mitsuko called out to him as she began to step forward, “Everyone’s been worried sick. Where have you been?”

“Don’t lie. No one’s even missed me,” he answered her, suddenly standing right in front of her.

“What are you talking about? Of course we have... She trailed off as she looked into his eyes, “Are you wearing contacts?”

“It doesn’t matter; you weren’t supposed to be here.” Riley ignored her question, “But she won’t be happy if I leave a witness.”

“Riley, what are you talking about?” Mitsuko was feeling afraid now, unsure if she’d be able to run in her current state. “You’re starting to scare me a bit, Riley.”

“I’m sorry for what’s about to happen.” His face changed into a snarl as he suddenly lunged towards her.

Elsewhere, a few minutes later…

Jasper rolled his eyes discreetly as he was forced to feel the tension between his brother and the young shifter. It was exhausting having to deal with teenage hormones on a regular basis, let alone the heightened hormones of two supernatural boys. He inhaled sharply in annoyance, eyes widening at the overwhelming scent that hit him. Blood and lots of it.

“HELP ME!” A shout got the attention of everyone on the balcony, looking down, spotting Mike Newton running from the woods, cradling something, Jessica running just as quickly behind him. “SOMEONE CALL AN AMBULANCE!”

The group quickly made their way down and outside, where a crowd was forming around the Newton boy. Although some of his family opted to stay back as the metallic smell of blood grew stronger the closer they got. Jasper followed closely behind Carlisle, who was making his way through the crowd.

Once the crowd parted, he froze at the bloody sight. Mike was holding Mitsuko in his arms, her body and hair almost unrecognisable from the sheer amount of blood.

“What happened?” Carlisle asked as Mike placed the girl on the ground. Jasper stepping forward and kneeling by her head.

The southern blonde heard Edward whisper a sharp, “Jasper, stay back.” But he ignored it; Mitsuko was someone he cared about; her blood wasn’t affecting him as he was too concerned with her well-being.

“I don’t know; some kind of animal attacked her; me and Jess heard a scream, and we just found her on the ground bleeding.” The young boy explained, trying to hold back tears at his friend’s condition. “She’s conscious, I think, but she’s not responding.”

“Honey, could you go grab the first aid kit?” Carlisle called to Esme, who moved back inside the house. She reappeared quickly, able to use her vampire speed since everyone was distracted outside. He thanked her gently before tearing the box open and pulling the gloves on.

As her began to clean the wounds, the young girl began to stir, muttering something, “Riley… don’t…” Jasper heard her mutter, as did his family, indicated by the sudden feeling of tension that spread through them all. It was at this moment that Carlisle wiped her neck clean and discovered a distinctive bite mark on her left side.

“Why isn’t she in pain?” Jasper quietly whispered to Carlisle so no human could hear; he was hyperfocused on her emotions as he was sending the young woman wave after wave of calm.

“I’m not sure, but she needs medical attention...” The other vampire whispered in reply, and he continued to take care of the young human.

Alongside her bite, she had several scratches and cuts across her body as if she’d been thrown around. What concerned Jasper most was the damage Riley was able to inflict without any of them becoming aware.

The ambulance drove rapidly down the drive of the Cullens house before the paramedics raced out with the gurney. The crowd parted once again as they approached the injured woman. Recognising the doctor, the older paramedic spoke to Carlisle as the other began to place Mitsuko on the gurney, “Dr. Cullen, how is she?”

“She lost a lot of blood before. I’ve wrapped a lot of the major wounds; she’ll need a transfusion for sure.” He explained as he followed them towards the ambulance, “What I’m most concerned about is the possible internal bleeding.”

“Understood. We’ll get to the hospital as quickly as possible,” the paramedic replied as they lifted the gurney into the back. “You wanna ride with us, doctor?”

“Yes, if that’s all right.” Carlisle agreed as the paramedic nodded and allowed him into the back of the ambulance.

As the ambulance raced back down the road, Jasper followed it with narrowed eyes. Everyone else had begun to rush toward Mike, who was drenched in Mitsuko's blood and clearly traumatised. Yet, despite the continuous commotion, the southern vampire’s thoughts remained solely on the young girl that lay in the ambulance.

‘Why didn’t the venom affect her?’ These were thoughts that crossed his mind as he moved his stare toward the puddle of blood she’d left behind, but another thought appeared in his mind, instilling curiosity and a small amount of dread: ‘Was she immune?’

Sunrise | Twilight J.H

Back to Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter 2. Jasper

Mitsuko had spent most of the weekend at home, both comforting and receiving comfort from her family. She’d also spent time with Riley’s parents, doing the same as she did for Charlie only a couple months ago. She even helped them with the missing posters.

Her friends had messaged to check on her after she’d left school early; she’d decided to be honest with them. In their friend group chat, she’d informed them about Riley and was thankful for the support they showed her. They also told her about how Edward had taken Bella out of town, explaining her lack of response in the chat.

By Sunday, she’d given herself enough time to comprehend the situation. Yet her dreams grew worse night by night. It was the same every time: blood was everywhere, upturned or smashed cars covered the car park, and people kept screaming. She saw figures clawing at each other, tearing them apart before throwing them into fires.

A particular shriek always shocked her awake, the same pitch every time, and Monday was no different. Her eyes flashed open in fear, and she quickly sat up, her pink floral duvet gathering by her legs. Bringing her hands to her face, she wiped the sleep from her eyes and moved the hair from her face.

‘Shit’ she thought as she looked to her bedside alarm clock; she’d woken up late. She scrambled out of bed to her vanity table, quickly putting on her everyday makeup and brushing her hair out.

After she was dressed in a simple white skirt and floral blouse, she made her way downstairs. She greeted her mom brightly and graciously accepted the piece of toast offered to her. Hoshiko was already sitting at the table eating a bowl of porridge, lifting her head to smile as her sister took the seat opposite.

They ate breakfast quickly and made sure to clear up their dishes after they ate. Hoshiko raced out of the house with a simple “Hurry up, we’re already late” before hopping into the passenger seat of the Mitsuko’s Mini. The drive to school was full of simple chatter and a mixture of pop and alternative music, a demand made by Hoshiko last year.

Hoshiko was busy telling Mitsuko about her classes for next year when they’d pulled up to school. The sisters parked next to Ben’s car, stepping out to greet their friends.

“Yo Suki, who do you think would win?” Mike immediately asked her instead of a greeting.

“What are you talking about?” She asked confusedly before turning towards where Mike then pointed, “Is that?“

“Edward and Jacob Black? Yep, I don’t know what they’re fighting about, but it seems pretty tense.” Jessica interrupted before she could finish.

Jacob's voice began to elevate as he got angrier, alarmed that her friend was close to a possible fight. Mitsuko stepped forward to try and intervene but was stopped by a strong grip on her wrist. Gasping at the sudden touch, she turned around, only to come face to face with Jasper Hale.

His face was stern and almost worried; brows furrowed, and he stared at her before speaking, "Don't; they know better than to get physical.”

“How do you know that?” She replied back, feeling confused again.

“Just trust me.” He smirked at her, causing a blush to spread across her cheeks.

“If you say so,” she conceded, pausing before continuing. “You have English first, don’t you?”

He didn’t speak, only nodding in reply. “Do you think I could walk with you? We’re in that class together.”

“I know.” Jasper spoke up. “And I don’t mind.” She smiled shyly at his response before gesturing for him to take the lead. It was only as they began walking that she realised Jasper hadn’t let go of her wrist the whole time they were talking, only letting go once she turned away from Edward and Jacob.

His touch returned as she walked up the front steps, a single hand placed on the small of her back to steady her as she walked. Jasper held the main doors open, which allowed her to step inside. It was then Mitsuko built up the courage to say what she’d been wanting to say to him since Friday. “Thank you, by the way.”

His steps faulted slightly as he turned to her, “What for?”

“It’s stupid,” she shook her head, “but on Friday you really helped me ground me, so thank you.”

“It’s not stupid, but you don’t need to thank me.” Jasper looked at Mitsuko deeply as he spoke. She had seen the Cullens eyes before, but Jasper’s seemed so much more intense than the others. It was like she could stare into the pools of amber all day.

‘You barely know him,’ she remained herself, unsure where these sudden feelings came from. Ever since Friday she’d felt a subtle itch under her skin as if her body was craving something; it only faded when she’d seen Jasper’s face.

Ignoring her rapid thoughts, she continued to walk next to Jasper down the corridor. Eventually, the pair arrived outside her English class. Stepping in, she noticed that her seat partner was absent today. Sighing, she sat down and prepared herself for a quiet class.

When she crouched to place her bag under her chair, she nearly jumped when she stood and found Jasper now sitting in the chair next to hers.

“You don’t mind if I sit here, do you?” He asked, looking intently.

“Not at all.” Mitsuko replied, smiling softly at him. They sat quietly next to each other while their teacher loaded up the movie on the monitor. As soon as he hit play, Jasper turned to her and whispered softly.

“How are you feeling?”

“Better than Friday, but I’ve been struggling with those episodes for a while, so I’m used to it.” There was something about Jasper that put her at ease; she couldn’t help but tell the truth.

“What exactly happened to you, if you don’t mind me asking?” He continued to whisper; neither was even attempting to watch the movie. Mitsuko hesitated slightly before answering.

“I get these... hallucinations sometimes,” she explained. “It’s not often, but when they happen, they tend to overwhelm me.”

“How do you deal with them?” Jasper asked, genuinely curious.

“Mostly medication, but it doesn’t work as well as it used to.” Mitsuko answered truthfully, and Jasper listened intently, his face full of concern. “I’ve kind of had a hard week.”

"Oh, do you want to… talk about it?”

“It’s…” She paused as a shot of grief ran through her. “My friend Riley Biers went missing in Seattle almost a year ago, and I’ve only just found out.”

“I’m sorry that happened.”

“I just wish I’d known sooner, you know?” Mitsuko explained, to which Jasper nodded in understanding, “Maybe I could’ve done something.”

Jasper lent towards her, cautiously placing his hands on her. She shivered under his cold touch but didn’t pull away. “Don’t do that to yourself; you have nothing to feel guilty about.”

“I don’t feel guilty.” She tried to state it firmly, but she knew it was a lie.

He smiled slightly. “Hate to break it to you, darling, but you wear your heart on your sleeve.”

She blushed and looked down at their hands were connected, noticing how he was softly stroking the back of her right hand. They sat there in silence for the rest of the lesson, just enjoying the comfort they felt from each other.

When the bell rang and the rest of the class began to stand, their hands finally separated. Jasper stood first, grabbing Mitsuko’s bag before grabbing his things as well. She smiled brightly as he helped her put the bag on her right shoulder before following him out of the room.

They walked side by side down the corridor, earning some strange looks from the other students. Yet the dark-haired girl paid them no mind and simply kept walking. 

"You know," Jasper started, "people are staring at us."

Mitsuko simply smiled at him before replying, “Just ignore them; they have nothing better to do.”

He glanced over to her again, studying her profile as they walked. "You never get bothered by people watching you?"

“Of course I do, but if I let it affect me all the time, I'd never go anywhere.” She explained matter of factly before continuing, “You know they’re probably only staring at you.”

“Me?”

The dark-haired girl looked at him with an amused expression. "Yeah, we’ve never hung out before, and now here you are escorting me down the hallways like a boyfriend does.” but before he could respond, she continued, "Not that I mind."

"Well, my apologies," he replied with a smirk, his southern twang coming out slightly. "Maybe I just realised you were someone worth paying attention to."

“Thank you.” She blushed slightly but played it off once she realised that they’d arrived outside my classroom. "Well, this is my class; thanks for escorting me here.”

“Anytime Ma’am.” The blonde replied, dipping his head slightly in a small bow.

With a bright smile, she made her way into the class, but not before giving Jasper a small wave goodbye. For the rest of the day, Mitsuko had an extra pep in her step but also couldn’t stop thinking about Jasper.

As much as she enjoyed his company, she was confused. Ever since the Cullens returned from wherever they had disappeared, Jasper had suddenly become very interested in her, and she’d definitely noticed.

At lunch it was the same as always, the group laughing together except with a new addition. Jasper had taken the seat next to Mitsuko again, listening intently as she joked with her friends, and gently placed his hand on her back again, following the same circle motions he used yesterday. She couldn’t help but lean into the touch, feeling wave after wave of comfort and contentment.

“So Jasper,” Jessica spoke up, causing him to finally look away from the girl next to him. “Will you be there at the graduation party?”

“Um, yeah, I’m sure Alice will find a way to make me come,” he answered a little awkwardly.

Angela looked at Jessica with a bemused expression. “You know it’s happening at his house, right?”

“Well, yeah, I was just wondering; he usually keeps to himself,” she responded before trying to Jasper, “no offence though.”

“None taken.” He replied politely with a small nod.

Hoping to diffuse the tension, Mitsuko turned to the blonde and smiled at him, “It’ll be nice to see you there.”

Jasper relaxed visibly when Mitsuko spoke up. It was clear he had been feeling a bit tense from the conversation with Jessica, but her words put him at ease.

"Yeah," he agreed with a small smile. "It will be nice to see you too.”

After Jasper spoke, the bell rung, so everyone began making their way out of the cafeteria and to the next classes. Jasper again took on the duty of escorting Mitsuko to her next class. The pair walked in silence until they stopped in front of her classroom.

“We probably won’t see each other after this.” She began, “I have a committee meeting after school, but I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, of course.” He nodded, “I will see you tomorrow.”

The two shared a smile, both excited for tomorrow but especially the party next week.

Sunrise | Twilight

Return to Masterlist | Next Chapter Chapter 1. The Tanakas

In all the time since the Cullens had moved to Forks, Mitsuko Tanaka had probably spoken to them once. Even when Bella Swan had moved into town and had somehow quickly become entangled with them, Mitsuko still only ever saw them in passing.

If it wasn’t for a friend’s severe mental state, she probably wouldn’t have noticed when the Cullens left a few months ago. She’d tried to be there for Bella, often appearing at her house with various baked goods, but her friend remained unresponsive. Instead, she began to help Charlie around the house since Bella was unable to help in her condition.

This continued for nearly half the school year, Mitsuko’s worry never lessening even after Bella rejoined the group’s table. Then suddenly one day she’d arrived at school to discover that the Cullens had suddenly reappeared, their table occupied once more.

She’d asked Bella what had happened, but her friend simply excused that The Cullens had simply missed their friends too much. ‘What friends?’ She remembers thinking. The only people the Cullens interacted with was Bella, and that was mainly because she was dating Edward.

Yet, despite the mysterious disappearance and reappearance of the Cullens, the strangest thing Mitsuko experienced was that Edward would now follow Bella to their group's table at lunch. Mitsuko had never even had a single conversation with this guy, and now he was suddenly sitting with them at lunch. Additionally, even then he never really spoke to her; he simply held Bella’s hand and would listen to the rest of the group interact.

She tried to ignore her overthinking and focus on her studies; graduation was coming up, and she wanted to be prepared for college and enjoy her time with her friends before some moved away.

Mitsuko had grabbed her lunch bag from her locker before going to the cafeteria and sitting down at her usual table. She uttered a ‘Hi’ to Bella and her boyfriend, who was already sitting down, before joining in with the lively conversation.

"Jess, are you still worried about your speech?” She’d asked her friend, and she scribbled away on a notepad.

“I just don’t want it to be a stereotypical graduation speech, ya know?”

“You’re getting too stressed about it, here." Mike spoke before stealing the notepad from the girl, “My fellow students. Cool. Right? We are the future. Anything is possible, if you just believe.”

Both Mitsuko and Angela laughed at his antics, with Angela adding a sarcastic “Nice” between her laughter. Ignoring the two, he continued, “Blah, blah, blah, and you got yourself a speech.”

He passed the notepad back to Jess, who ripped the bag out before speaking, “No, this will be my speech. When I want everyone to throw diplomas at my head. So, thank you.” As she spoke, she crumpled the piece of paper and threw it back at Mike’s face.

He ignored the paper and smiled smugly before replying, “Ya gotta embrace the cliches, Jess.”

“They have the bread and butter of all valedictorians,” Eric chimed in from next to Angela, causing her to also chime into the conversation. “And that is why you are not valedictorian.”

“Give the guy a break, Ang,” her boyfriend Ben spoke up, his arms wrapping around her shoulder.

“And Jess doesn't need clichés. Speech is gonna be epic.” Bella spoke up, smirking at the boys, earning a proud smile from Jess.

“Epic? It'll change lives.” She stated confidently.

“I’m sure it’ll change mine." She nudged Jessica as she spoke, earning an appreciative side hug. The group was interrupted from continuing when three other Cullens approached the table and sat down.

Alice and Emilie would occasionally join their group during lunch, mainly so Alice could spend time with Bella. However, Mitsuko found herself getting along with the pixie’s gorgeous girlfriend the more they spoke. Today, Alice had somehow managed to drag Jasper to the table as well, pushing him down into the seat next to Mitsuko.

“I’ve decided to throw a party.” Alice announced brightly as she took her seat.

“After all, how many times are we gonna graduate high school?” Emilie smirked as she spoke, and Mitsuko heard Edward stifle a laugh. Weird.

“A party? At your place?” Angela asked, confused by the sudden invite.

Jessica had immediately perked up at the invitation, “I’ve never seen your house.”

“No one's ever seen their house.” Eric leaned in, replying to Jessica.

“I’ve heard it’s in the woods or something…” Lauren spoke up in mock disgust, but Mitsuko knew she was just as excited as Jessica.

“Another party, Alice?” Edward uttered, seemingly annoyed with his sister, to which Alice insisted, “It'll be fun.”

“Yeah. That's what you said last time.” Bella spoke, agreeing with her boyfriend’s hesitation.

“I think it’ll be fun…” She began to encourage when she noticed Alice start to zone out, probably upset at the less than enthusiastic reaction, but trailed off when she noticed Jasper stiffen next to her. “Hey, you okay?”

Surprised at the sudden question, the blonde turned towards her.  "Apologies, just had a sudden thought.”

“Oh yeah, I get those too; don’t worry.” Mitsuko comforted, unconsciously patting his arm in comfort. He stiffed again, and she was going to apologise until a feeling of dread washed over her. “Hey Angie, could you pass me my clear bag?”

Her friend furrowed her brows in confusion but still pushed the clear bag towards her. Mitsuko quickly unzipped it to pull out a strip of tablets. Before she could take her tablet though, a loud pained scream blared into her head, causing her to jump slightly and cover her ears.

"Suki, are you okay?” Katie whispered to her gently to avoid too much attention, “Did you miss your dosage this morning?”

Her close friends were the only ones aware that she took medicine due to her auditory hallucinations. She’d had from the age of fifteen, just before the Cullens had moved to Forks. Her mother had consulted with several doctors who had all come to the conclusion that while it wasn’t schizophrenia, they didn’t have any other diagnosis; she’d been on a prescription ever since.

The scream was continuous and getting louder, joined by various other screams making Mitsuko press her hands into her ears harder. Her head was pounding from the noise, and she was completely unaware of what was happening around; expect for a single comforting hand on her back rubbing her in circles. She tried to focus on the motion of the hand, forcing the screaming to quieten, allowing her to remove her hands and lift her head back up to face a table of concerned faces.

“I’m sorry guys, I don’t know what happened." She said quietly, still recovering from her small episode.

“It’s okay, we’re just worried about you, is all. Maybe you should go home and have some rest?” Angela suggested gently.

Mitsuko nodded in agreement and gathered her things, and as she stood, the hand finally moved from her back, and she realised who it belonged to. Jasper Hale had been the one gently rubbing her back; he was the hand that had grounded her. ‘Don’t overthink it; he’s just being nice,’ she chastised herself mentally before her mind could reel.

As she was walking through the cafeteria, she spotted her younger sister, Hoshiko, sitting with her own group of friends. She figured she should tell her sister rather than letting her worry, plus she was her ride home. “Hoshi!” She called to her sister, getting her attention.

“Suki, are you okay?” She asked as Mitsuko got closer. Hoshiko was aware of her older sister’s mental health and hallucination issues, but Mitsuko had made sure it didn’t affect her life too much. As the older sister, she felt her sister should always come first and had also instructed her mom as such, even when they were only a year and two months apart.

Mitsuko waved her sister off before reassuring her, “I’m okay, but I am going home early today, so could Rory give you a ride today?”

"Yeah, that’s fine." Hoshiko nodded in understanding, “Just message when you get home, okay?”

“Of course.” She then placed a soft kiss on her sister's head before heading to the nurse office. After she got the okay from the nurse, not that she really needed one, Mitsuko left the building and began walking to her car. It was a little white Mini Cooper; she was lucky enough to find one she could afford that was still in pretty good condition. She opened the doors and tossed her pink shoulder bag onto the pink leathered back seats, which she had done over the summer.

She tried to ignore the leftover feeling of dread from her episode and listened to the music on her custom CD on the way home. It was luckily a very relaxing car journey. Lucky because as she pulled in to her house, she noticed a police car waiting outside.

Concerned, Mitsuko scrambled to grab her and things and got out of the car. As she stepped into the house, she was greeted by Charlie and her mom sitting down in the living room, pausing in their conversation when the door audibly latched.

“I um had an episode today,” she said meekly, explaining her early arrival home. “What’s going on?”

“What don’t you sit down?” The police chief offered as her mom shuffled on the couch to give her daughter room to sit. Cautiously, she walked to the couch and gently sat down, preparing herself for the obviously bad news. “It’s Riley Biers; he’s gone missing.”

As Charlie spoke, Mitsuko felt the felling of dread return. She let out a small gasp in disbelief. “He’s studying at UW; he should be in Seattle.”

“Nobody’s seen him since last November,” he replied grimly. “Have you heard from him at all?”

“We haven’t really talked since he moved; he said that he’d been too busy with his friends.” She answered, rubbing her lips together while trying to stop the tears. “Why are you only telling us now?”

“His parents were mainly talking to the Seattle police, but they’ve just closed the case." He explained, his voice measured and calm, “So they’ve contacted me, and Forks PD are going to take the case.”

Mitsuko nodded in understanding, but her mind began to buzz, overwhelmed with her emotions. Her mom pulled into a hug, and she finally broke down as a sob escaped her lips. They stayed there for a few minutes, Charlie wanting to let her calm down before he left.

“I’m sorry, kid; let me know if you need anything.” He said to her a final time before heading out the door. Still buried in her mom’s tight embrace, she barely lifted her head to nod before burying her face again when she heard the click of the lock.

“I’m so sorry, Mitsuko.” Her mother whispered softly to her, pulling away. She allowed her mom to gently wipe her tears away. “How about to get some rest and make you some tea, okay?”

She nodded as much as she could with her face cupped in mom’s hands. Her mom stood and made her way to the kitchen to get everything ready. Mitsuko made the decision to get off the couch and make her way upstairs to her room; she pulled back her covers before lying down. Under the comfort of her bed, she felt her eyes grow heavy; the day had clearly taken its toll on her. 

So tired, she fell into a deep sleep, only awoken when she felt some pull back the covers again and crawl into the bed next to her. She opened her eyes to come face to face with her younger sister’s concerned face. “I guess mom told you what happened?”

“Yeah…” Hoshiko whispered back, “I just can’t believe it.”

She nodded before reaching out and pulling her sister into a tight hug. The sisters had always been close to Riley, having been his neighbours since they moved to forks at the ages of ten and nine, respectively. While Riley had drifted from them as he grew up, he still contacted them every now and then, always making the same joke about how they were only a year away from being twins. Neither of them would get that message again.

Yet as they held each other close, their pain washed away. While the world was harsh, the Tanaka sisters would always have each other.