MR. RICHARD ALPERT and his eyeliner goodness.  Lol.


I didn't really like tonight's episode because a lot of "minor" characters seemed to have stolen the show.


And then Abbadon appearing to Locke was a "OMGWATCHOUT" moment.


T_T Claaaaire what are you dooooing.  And Christian o_O... Looking a little too comfy in that cabin.


Ben looked... depressed.  I wanted to snog hug him ;_;


KEAMY, YOU JERK.  Leave the Losties alone D:


MICHAEL, you're still not screaming "WAAAAAAALT!!!1111!"  But that's a good thing.


I wonder if Desmond is up to something... after he saw that Keamy did...


JULIET, plz to be seeing moar of you.

Thorne watched with a solemn expression as his sister entered the guest room in a day gown that he had purchased her earlier in the week.  It was a whimsical piece—black, with uneven edges that was neither loose or form-fitting.  The strands of her dark hair seemed to blend in with the dress straps that hung loosely upon her shoulders.  There was something different about her—something slack in the way she held herself and there was a curiously thoughtful smile upon her lips.  Without taking his eyes of her, he lifted a delicate wine glass to his lips and partook of the bitter liquid.  As she took a seat in the chair across from him, the curious smile faded slowly into a neutral expression. 

            He tilted his head lazily and smiled mockingly, “I do believe that you weren’t in bed this morning.”

            “Of course I was in bed this morning,” Kanako answered steadily, trying not to betray any emotion, “you were perhaps dreaming or sleepwalking…”

            He regarded her incredibly expressionless visage and mused to himself.  Her eyes always betray her…  He remained silent, enjoying the way her hair framed her face as he lifted the glass to his lips once more.

            “You’ve been sneaking out,” Thorne stated gruffly, trying to distract himself with the reddish liquid that sloshed about in its glass, “to meet who, I wonder.”

            “I haven’t been sneaking--.”

            “Don’t lie to me, Kanako,” he spat with narrowed eyes, “who did you see?”

            At first, she clenched her jaw, refusing to answer—then, “I did not see anyone, Thorne.”

            She flinched at the sound of glass breaking and drew her face back as he was suddenly standing in front of her, breathing into her face, “Is it a man, Kanako?  You’ve been seeing some filthy, commoner--.”

            “Thorne, you are drunk,” she stated simply as she rose, pushing him away with steady hands, “I cannot speak to you in this state.”

            But before she could even exit the guest room, he had turned her around roughly and pinned her against the wall, clutching at her wrist.  She stared calmly at the dangerous look in her brother’s eyes and felt a hint of trepidation course through her.  Steadily, she tried to twist her hand out of his grasp but he only gripped harder.

            “Have you told someone about us?”  He demanded forcefully, “TELL ME!”

            “I haven’t said anything…” Kanako trailed off fearfully, “please don’t--.”

            “You KNOW not to lie to me!”  He hissed, slamming her hand against the wall, “You TOLD SOMEONE.”

            “NO, I HAVEN’T!”  She shrieked back, and repeated softly, “I haven’t…”

            She sighed as she felt the grip on her wrist loosen and stared breathlessly, anxiously waiting for Thorne’s next action.  The way that he was breathing and staring at her seemed to signal he was about to strike her.  Kanako’s lips parted as she allowed a few tears to slide down her trembling jaw.  She drew her hand from his slackened grip to wipe her face.

            “Kanako,” he sighed, also wiping her wet face with his fingers, “I’m sorry… I… I love you.”

            “I-I know,” she nodded with relief, touching his fingers.

            “I don’t want to lose you,” he murmured, sliding his hands along her bare arms to grip her by the shoulders, “you’re the only one I have left… Do you understand?”

            “And you’re the only one I have left, Thorne,” she sighed raising her fingers to the hair in his eyes.

            He nodded as he cupped her face with surprising gentleness and pressed his lips against hers, “You’re mine.”

            “Thorne, what are you doing?”  She murmured softly as she felt herself slowly pushed against an embroidered tapestry.  Kanako watched with astonishment as he leaned down towards her, entangling her fingers with his.

            “I’m sorry, I love you,” Thorne whispered against her lips before plunging into that sweet little mouth.  A terrible blush rose to her cheeks as she closed her eyes, realizing just who was kissing her.  The memory of Marianna’s shocked face suddenly came to her.  What was he doing to you?  Her eyes opened and she pushed him away, staring apprehensively at him.  I don’t know, but I didn’t dislike it.  For a moment he stared at her, then his fingers were suddenly at the straps of her dress and he brushed them off of her shoulders, causing her hands to fly up in an attempt to prevent it from sliding off her.

            “Thorne?” Kanako questioned.

            “Trust me,” he said softly, gently prying away her fingers and glimpsing the fabric of her undergarments as he kissed her.  Kanako closed her eyes, welcoming the feel of Thorne’s hands upon her.  She shivered for a reason unknown to her and touched his face with her hands.

            “What the bloody hell are you two doing?!” Came an outrageously loud voice.

            Kanako pulled away as she pulled the fabric of her gown back up to its proper place and stared at the scowling red-haired girl standing in the hallway.  The girl was around their age, though dressed very differently in what looked like commoner clothes.  Kanako noticed something familiar about her, as the girl placed her arms across her ample bust.

             “And you will explain how you got in here, dear cousin,” Thorne smirked calmly.

            “It’s Annalisse, Thorne.”

           

             

Her head whipped to the figure walking in front of her, suddenly hearing Annalisse's rambunctious laughter as it rang through the dense wood around them.  Walking a few feet ahead of her was Atley, singing quite drunkenly to nobody in particular.  Carlos trailed behind the three of them quietly, but occasionally commenting on whether they were off track or not.  Kanako was finding it particularly difficult trying to navigate her way among the shrubs and tree branches, especially since it was the dead of night.  How can they all see in the dark like this?  She felt the presence of Carlos at her side and felt his hand grasp hers. 

"Atley, if you don't watch--ATLEY BECAREFUL!"

As soon as the words had left Annalisse's mouth, the said man cursed loudly as he tripped

ungracefully into a mesh of bush branches. 

"It's a little eerie in here, isn't it," Kanako murmured as she looked around  at the

unearthly glow of the moonlight that seemed to permeate through the woods.

            “Yeah…”  Carlos nodded quietly, also observing the stillness of the forest but seemed to be enjoying himself. 

After being helped up by the red-haired girl and brushing himself off, Atley sighed, "So

where is this place, Conniver?" 

"Don't call me that," Carlos replied evenly, then gestured with his hand, "it's up ahead,

we'll be there soon."

"Wasn't there an easier way to get there?"  Kanako asked.

"To hell with things being easy," Atley said with a laugh, starting to walk again, "this

makes things more interesting..."

            “Then you’ve already been here,” Annalisse raised her brows at the black-haired girl.

            “Ah yes, Carlos brought me… here… once…”  Kanako trailed off, trying to hide her reddening face, “not this way though…”

            “You were blindfolded so you wouldn’t know--,” Carlos stated, then slapped his hand over his mouth, quickly trying to get away from the red-haired girl who grabbed his arm.

            “YOU HAD HER BLINDFOLDED?!”

            He winced at the accusatory, but amused tone in her voice, “I wasn’t trying to do anything… Really—don’t give me that look.”

            “Thorne would have my head…”  Annalisse sighed, releasing her grip on Carlos’ arm, and glanced at Kanako, who was trying to avoid her gaze as well.

            “Well, he didn’t do anything,” Kanako mused out loud, suddenly quickening her pace as they continued on, “and Thorne’s not here right now.”

            Annalisse’s lip twitched as she stopped in her footsteps, grabbing onto the fabric of Carlos’ coat once more.  He made a small noise of astonishment and gave her the “what now” look. 

            “Atley, you and Kanako can keep walking…” she stated calmly, glancing at the unruly-haired guy, “if Carlos is right, this ‘special place’ should be dead ahead.  But yes, he and I are going to have a nice little chat.”

            “Indeed,” Atley smirked knowingly, offering his arm to Kanako, “do come with me, fair maiden, and leave these two in privacy.”

            Kanako threw a reassuring smile at Carlos before daintily prancing off with Atley through the woods, toward their final destination.  Carlos then turned reluctantly to the green-eyed girl, who wore an unusually serious expression on her face.

            “What are you doing, Conniver?”

            “What are you talking about?  And don’t call me that,” Carlos sighed, running a hand through his own hair.

            “You’re in love with her,” Annalisse stated in a nervous voice.

            “And what’s wrong with me being in love with her?  Why do you… sound afraid?”

            “Does she love you?”  Annalisse cut across sharply.

            “Why do you want to know?”  Carlos chewed on his inner cheek, realizing that her questions were getting a little too personal.

            “Does she love you?”  She repeated, chewing on her own lip.

            He stared hard at her, trying to mentally make her back down from a brewing confrontation or even forgetting the conversation and catching up to the other two.  But she would not back down.  Okay, her eyes are glinting like there is a firestorm blazing behind them...  He chewed on his inner check once more—a habit he did when he was feeling defensive.

            “Yes,” he muttered, “yes, she does.”

            “Have you been intimate with her?”  She added with raised eyebrows.

            “NO!”  Carlos snapped, “What has this got to do with anything?  Why do you want to know?!”

            The brief moment in which surprise at his outburst had crossed her face was quickly masked, “Because Thorne wouldn’t allow it…  He wouldn’t allow you, a… a commoner, to…”

            “To do what?”  Carlos whispered menacingly in her face, “To marry her?”

            Annalisse’s eyes widened in shock, “Y-you can’t.  You can’t marry her.  No.  No, no, no.”

            “Why not?”  Carlos had backed her into a tree, watching her wince as a branch that had threaded itself through her hair scratched against the side of her forehead.  Annalisse gazed at his face, seeing the aggression in his eyes… So much for being in control of this small chat…

            “Because Thorne wants her for himself,” she whispered with knit brows, “Thorne is in love with her.  When Kanako is of eighteen years of age… He plans to marry her… In order to continue the bloodline.”

            “What!”  Carlos hissed, drawing away from her, refusing to look at her for a few moments, remembering that she was related to the despicable man.  Then he turned to her once more, “But you can’t possibly be allowing this!  They-they were raised in the same household!  Even if they’re not blood-related, they’re still brother and sister!  It’s wrong!”

            Annalisse looked at him miserably, “Carlos, he killed his parents.”

            The black-haired man looked even more alarmed, “He did WHAT?”

            “Well it hasn’t been proven, but I have a feeling that in order to keep a closer hold on her… He killed them.

            “Do you see now!”  Carlos was suddenly holding her by the shoulders, “You can’t let her marry someone like him!  He’s dangerous!”

            “Then what would you have me do?”  A sob accidentally escaped her lips.

            “Why are you crying?”  Carlos asked in a softer tone.

            “Thorne will kill me too…”

            “What if we all ran away together, to a place where Thorne could never find any of us.  Atley will take good care of you, and I will take care of Kanako.”

            “You think it’s that easy?”  Annalisse wiped her nose with her sleeve.

            “No, but I’m willing to try.”

    Well this was a very Ben-centric episode, but that's ALL good because... e_e I guess I have a crush on his character (OMG TASHA WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU).  -__-;; He's just all... suave and composed, but kind of manipulative/evil...  I'd hit that.  :XXXXX

    When I thought Claire was going to die, I was all ";__; noooo who's going to raise Aaron?!"  I thought it was sweet that Sawyer suddenly became all protective and concerned for her.  They would make an interesting pairing.

     X__X And then the soldier dude came forward to show Ben that they had taken Alex as hostage... ;__; It was so sad to see Ben affected, then:


    Soldier guy:  ... If you don't get your ass here right now, I'm going to kill your daughter...

    Alex:  ;__; ::sobbing:: Daddy...

    Ben:  ... I have the situation under control, every thing's going to be fine.

    Soldier guy:  You have 10 seconds.

    Ben:  ... She's not my daughter.  I stole her from a madwoman.  She means nothing to me, she's just a pawn.  So if you want to kill her, go ahead and--

    Soldier guy:  ::shoots Alex in the head and walks off::

    Ben:  O______O... ::FU#$()(@#@#@#:: .... O_________O


    And then I was just all, "O____O... Oh shnap... Sad Ben --> Angry Ben --> PWNING YOUR ASS Ben.  And he did.  I seriously think now that he has some control over the Smoke Monster because it looked like he summoned it to kill the Freighters...  Or maybe he ordered Jacob to order the Smoke Monster to kill?  Hmmm...  But yes, now I kind of want to see him kill off Widmore's daughter.

    And what was with Ben traveling to all these different places and still looking well... hot.  e_e;

    T_T;; And that's sad how Sayid finally married the woman he loved ONLY FOR HER TO BE KILLED BY ONE OF WIDMORE'S MEN.  Urrgh, I dislike Widmore. 

    OH NOES, Jack is sick and has the risk of dying from a ruptured appendix.  JULIET, SAVE YOUR MAN.  :X

    ::sigh::  All in all, this episode was a gripping come-back.  Things are only getting better.

Kanako jumped up slightly with wide eyes at the sight of a disheveled-looking Thorne standing at the foot of her bed.  Her bedroom doors had been flung open by her brother, whom had entered quite noisily.  His eyes were wild with fear as he came to stand at the side of her bed, suddenly grabbing her by her arms.

"Thorne?" she asked worriedly, "what's wrong?  What's the matter?  You look horrible!"

"Th-they're dead."

"Wha-Who?  Who's dead?" she blinked confusedly, trying to ease out of his firm grasp.

"Our parents," he said breathlessly, noticing the strap of her nightgown hanging from her shoulder, "th-they're dead... I found Father in the study... and-and Mother in her room, she was stabbed..."

"N-n-no," she said quickly, stumbling onto her feet as she proceeded out of her room, with her brother trailing behind her.  With an un-ladylike impatience, she pushed open the half-closed doors to study and was met with the sight of her father's body, strewn awkwardly in the upholstered chair.  Kanako swallowed with difficulty, and suddenly found herself trembling all over in disbelief.  Without realizing it, she had backed away from the double doors, retreating into the hallway and backing into a painting behind her that promptly dislodged itself from the wall.

“Kanako.”  Thorne stated in a deadpan voice, staring at her trembling lips and failed to grasp her as she ran towards their mother’s room.  He went after her heard a small, astonished cry as her legs failed her, sending her crashing into a nearby flower stand.

“Kanako!” He yelled as the flower vase dumped its contents upon her as she brought her hands to her face.  He instantly dropped to his knees, taking her into his arms and cradling her head.

“Thornnne,” she sobbed uncontrollably, rocking herself, “Thornnne… someone wants to kill us, someone wants to kill us, someone wants to—.”

“I don’t think so,” he answered calmly, as he stared at the flowers strewn upon the floor behind her.

“What do you mean?”  She drew away to look at him fearfully, quickly glancing at the carnage on her mother’s bed , “what if… what if they’re going to kill us one by one?  What if they’re coming back for us?  What if—.”

She began sobbing again, burying her face into her brother’s coat.  In her begrieved state, Kanako failed to notice that Thorne had suddenly taken an interest in her hair and was running his fingers through the dark strands.  He closed his eyes and shifted his face slightly, turning inwards against the flesh of her bare neck.  Gardenia.  The mere scent of her…makes me…He felt a sudden pang of desire as he allowed his lips to graze against her skin.  Ah, so sinful…

            “Thorne, I want to go away from here.”

            His eyes snapped open, quickly clearing any wandering impure thoughts of her and he drew back slowly to look at her, “To where, darling?”

            “I want…” Kanako was visibly trying to not look at the ghastly sight that was a few feet away from them, she mumbled, “Theoshun…”

            “You want to live by the sea, but of course my darling,” he replied, rising to his feet and offering her his hand, “wherever you want.”

            As long as I have you.

            Her dark hair fluttered minutely as she nodded, looking up at him with her wide eyes.

            My poor, sweet girl. 

            “Somewhere where we can’t be found by them?”  She said pleadingly, touching his arm, nervously glancing at their dead mother. 

            Thorne touched her chin with his finger, gazing at her with a perfectly blank face, “Of course… I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.  We’ll go far away, where no one will come between us…”

She felt incredibly awkward, strolling down the country side toting a dainty parasol with this scraggly-looking man next to her.  Is this what it feels like to go outside?  To add onto that, she was blindfolded but was being guided by the gentle pressure of his gloved hand upon her arm.  Kanako wondered why she had let herself get into this situation in the first place.  He is so going to take advantage of me.  And I don’t even know how far we are from town.  And I don’t have any weapons on me.  Stupid, stupid, stupid.

“How much farther is it?”  Kanako asked, seeming to address no one in particular.  She felt the cool, light autumn breeze pass through her hair, disturbing the skirt of her dress slightly.  She felt him grab her hand, aiming to steady her as she faltered forward over a dip in the ground.

“Almost there, can you smell it?”  Carlos asked.

Smell what?

“Smell?  This place has a smell?”  Kanako pondered aloud, “I don’t… smell anything.  But it’s a little chilly…”

She then felt the warmth of his breath upon her face as he answered quietly, “You’ll know why once you see it.”

She felt the parasol taken from her hand and blinked under the blindfold, expecting something horrible to befall her.  Why, why, why, am I here?  With him?  What would Thorne say?  Then there was the sensation of his fingers behind her head, undoing the blindfold, but she knew that he was facing her as he was doing so.  A blush stole across her face—no one had ever been this physically close to her as her brother had…  The cloth fell from her eyes, which instantly opened to the sight before her.  Without realizing, she took a sharp intake of breath as her feet carried her a short distance.

“This is…” Kanako started, then turned back in the direction that they came from.  The setting sun shone its golden light upon the little hills and she could see little smoke plumes rising from town.  Her black hair slithered across her face as she turned with parted lips back to Carlos, only to find him observing her a little too seriously, “What?”

Carlos blinked and stepped toward her, “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” 

He watched as a smile came to her face for the first time that afternoon, “Yes, it is.  It looks so different from up here…”

Kanako turned back towards the mountains and waded through the waist-high grains, her fingers fluttering over their tops.  Her eyes shut in bliss, enjoying the cool mountain breeze that weaved through the thin fabric of her dress.  She spun gracefully allowing her hair to whip about her, not realizing she was being watched.  Carlos watched in amusement as she lost her balance and descended into the pasture with a surprised look on her face.  He made his way over and stood above her, trying to mask any hint of humor.

“Here,” he stated, holding out his hand and was promptly yanked forward so that he too fell against her, “Bloody he—.”  He stopped, watching her turn away from him, trembling from silent laughter.  Carlos sat up and grabbed her by her shoulder, forcing her to face him.  Kanako stopped laughing and she stared up at him with a flushed face and wide eyes.  But before she could block them, his hands were at her sides, tickling her mercilessly.  A smirk crossed his face as she began to flail uncontrollably, still laughing and pleading for him to stop.  After awhile, he drew away, allowing her to sit up and he regarded her in a whole new light.  So she could laugh—She was not emotionless like her brother.  She was human after all.   

“Sorry,” she said lightly to him, watching as he lay back into the grass, “Why did you bring me here?” 

“Sometimes we all just need to get away from things,” Carlos replied, noticing the first stars beginning to litter the night sky, “do you not like it?”

“No no,” she said quickly, then continued in a quieter tone, “I think it’s wonderful… I never thought it would be like this… I read about being in the mountains from my books.  Thorne always brings me books.”

“He doesn’t let you out a lot, does he,” Carlos mused, “like a—.”

“Caged songbird,” she finished, “you bring that up a lot.  What do you mean by it?”

Carlos looked at her disbelievingly, “You don’t understand the concept?  He seems to be overprotective of you, not letting you wander around town freely as you want, or spending time with other people… But I think you do want to see new things, new places, new people… That’s why you’re here with me right now.”

“Yes,” Kanako smiled minutely, “Why do you care that I’m like a ‘songbird’?”

Carlos was silent, refusing to look back at the knowing smile on her face.

“You…like me,” she leaned forward, trying to meet his averted gaze, “Annalisse told me.”

“Annalisse!” he exclaimed in exasperation, finally looking at her and then quickly shutting his mouth.  He felt a wave of hotness overcoming his face—and it wasn’t anger.  He sat  up suddenly, trying to not look at her again.  She made a small, contented sound and continued in a sing-song voice, “She said you want to kiss me and--.”

“Can I?”  He shot back shamelessly, half turning to look at her.  He tried not to smirk as an expression of astonishment crossed her features.  She had clearly not been expecting that sort of answer.  Then she straightened up and smirked back, “Can you?”  And yet she swallowed nervously as she noticed him shift closer to her.

“May I?”  Carlos countered softly, reveling in the way her lips parted, trying to come back with a witty reply.  And when no words would come, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.  After a brief moment, Kanako pulled away, pressing her hand to her lips, and averted her eyes.

With a great intake of breath and a feeling of shame, Carlos sighed, “I’m sorry.”

After awhile, he brought himself to look back at her, only to find an unreadable expression on her face. 

“Can we—again?”  She mumbled.

“What?”  He tilted his head, not hearing her properly.  But whatever reply he had come up with was instantly gone from his mind the moment he felt her lips against his.

“I like you too, Carlos LeCroix.”

Have thoughts similar to mine?  Like when a certain hour comes around in the evening, my thought start going like this:

"And what wonderful thing did you see or learn about the world today?  Nothing?  Do you think it will stay this way? 

Are you proud of what you did or did not do today?  Who did you make happy today?  Who did you make sad?

Can you go on living in the world now that society seems to be going down the wrong path?  Can you endure?"

    Thorne stared at his gloved hands then to the face in the mirror.  A pale, serious face stared back with cold, unfeeling eyes.  He swallowed and shook the mahogany strands of hair out of his eyes.  He could do this.  He would kill.  And succeed.  It had been three weeks now—three weeks since they had found him with her.  He could faintly recall the cry of shock from his mother, the yelling and the hands grabbing him away from her.  He remembered her sweet lips and the slightly confused look upon her visage.  Brothers don’t kiss their sisters like that!  But she was not his sister—they had adopted her on that miserable, rainy day on which she showed up at their doorstep.  He had taken a liking to her instantly, being the first one to talk and converse with her about who she was and where she came from.  She was soft-spoken, but deliberate in her words and seemingly unfazed by events.  He delighted in the way that she seemed to hide behind her long hair, which he liked to touch.  But when she was on the verge of laughter, her violet eyes grew wide in disbelief and then that musical sound came from behind her hand, which she placed upon her lips.  Oh damn, those lips.  Those lips that he had plundered. 

            “Thorne?”

            He turned silently towards his mother’s voice, seeing her standing a little down the hall, “Yes, Mother?”

            “It’s late in the evening, dear.  You should get to bed.  Have you looked in on your sister?”

            His lips quirked at his mother’s emphasis on the word “sister.”  He heard the barely hidden disgust in her voice.  You won’t have to be disgusted anymore, dear Mother.

            “No, but I’ll do that on the way to bed,” Thorne replied, sliding his gloved hands into his coat pockets, “sleep well.”

            And with silent steps, he proceeded to his father, who sat in the study.  Thorne stood in the doorway, silently regarding the man before him.  As usual, his father seemed to pay no attention to him, instead focusing on a thick book.  After closing the double doors behind him, he crossed the carpet with casual, but calculated steps.

            “Shouldn’t you be in bed now?  It’s nearly two in the morning, you know.”  His father stated, never lifting his eyes from the reading material before him.

            “Thank you for your concern, Father, I came to borrow a book to read in bed,”  Thorne replied calmly as he stepped towards the bookcase behind the chair that his father was seated in.  His eyes roamed nonchalantly over the many leather-bound books as he pulled a rather long cloth from his pocket.  Do it now.  Kill him.  His lips twitched in humor at the thought.

            “I never understood you, Thorne,”  his father snorted, turning a page, “you’ve always been a strange one.”

            “Do not worry yourself about it,” Thorne answered, and slid the cloth around that vulnerable neck before him, “she understands me.”

            “Now if you’re talking about her--,” the words were cut off as Thorne drastically increased the pressure around his father’s neck, and quickly moved to subdue the violent, twitching movements.  Thorne stared emotionlessly at the dying man before him, putting forth the most of his strength.  Die, you bastard.  Why aren’t you dying?  He felt a twinge of fear as the violent movements seemed to continue on and he wondered whether or not if he was not applying enough pressure.  Finally, the erratic movements ceased and Thorne gradually loosened his grip on the tightly-wound cloth.  He stared at the limp form that was now slouched over the arm rest, hand dangling limply.  Feeling a sudden boost of satisfaction, he proceeded to the fireplace, and dislodged a rather slim katana from the wall above.

            “You will serve me quite well, won’t you,” he stated airily as he proceeded to step out into the hallway, quietly unsheathing the sword.  With a final glance towards her room, he padded over to his parents’ room and pushed the double doors open soundlessly.  The room was mostly darkened, save for the moonlight that seeped into the room.  With stealth, he came to stand beside the bed and gazed down at his mother, staring at the reddish-brown hair similar to his own.  How tragically beautiful.  But she had never truly loved him.  She had never understood his preference to solitude and was always forcing him into social situations.  She wanted him to be like her:  talkative, outgoing, but incredibly superficial. 

            And to his shock, those teal eyes were suddenly staring up at him with bewilderment and in realization, “You!-.”

Without even realizing it, his arm that held the katana came down with a mighty swoop, silencing whatever she was about to say.  This particular one had come as a surprise—it was as if she had known from the time he had entered her room.  Silently, he observed the blood pooling and soaking up the light-colored beddings.  His teal-colored eyes flickered to the open window, into the black sky and a chilly breeze fluttered into the room.  Black like her hair…  He slid the bloody katana against the bedding, taking care to rid most of the blood before putting it back in its sheath.  On the way out of the room, he closed the double doors and began to make his way towards her room.

He froze in front of the double doors to her room as he thought he heard footsteps padding around inside.  Cautiously, he swung them open and was met with an equally dimly-lit room.  Calmly, he closed the doors behind him placing the katana against the wall and went to kneel at the side of her bed.  The adrenaline rush that he had felt from what had just occurred dropped immediately as he gazed upon her.

“Kanako,” he sighed softly, his hand automatically reaching to stroke her hair.  He was met with movement and flickering eyelids that forced themselves to open fully, “Thorne?  What are you—.”

“They won’t say anything,” he cut across gently, moving to sit next to her, “I couldn’t sleep.”

“Oh,” Kanako sat up slightly, her eyes wide in the dark, “do you want to talk about it?  Did something happen?  I heard noises…”

Thorne masked the flicker of alarm that attempted to show upon his face, “…Are you frightened?”

“No,” she smiled thoughtfully, settling back into her pillow, “you would never allow anything to happen to me.”

“And I mean it,” he said with a nod, and quietly slid down to her level, “you mean a lot to me, you know?”

“I do,” she yawned, and allowed her eyes to shut, “I’m sorry I am so sleepy… I might not be able to say anymore…”

“Then I’ll hold you,” he said and felt relief as she shifted closer to him, her arm draping casually across his chest.  The fragrance of her hair seemed to waft over to him and he delighted in it, sliding his arm under her little head as a make-shift pillow, “You needn’t worry about anything now, darling.”