Chapter seven: Mirror

One Year Later:

Kirihara Riku let her long hair hang loose. Her feminine figure became more elegant, but the boys of her school kept their distance.

Thinking English class was redundant; she skipped it and broke into the janitor's utility room, stealing black paint, a paintbrush and a flat-tip screwdriver. Riku entered the main hall, popped open the bucket using the screwdriver, and wrote, Sensei of this school are ignorant and they need to be reeducated.

As soon as she finished, Riku snuck out of the building. She sprinted towards the red brick wall, ran up it and pulled herself over. She smiled back at the school and made her way to the JR line.

No doubt the school board would think she had left the graffiti, but they would merely suspend her as always.

After jumping onto the train, she disembarked into Harajuku to gaze at the latest fashion. She had picked out shirts that had angled crosses, skulls, and the latest J-Rock bands like DEATHGAZE, Girugamesh, and Lynch. There were also a few black and dark blue jeans Riku adored.

To the reckless teen's enjoyment, she was not paying a yen since she had borrowed her mother's credit card.

Feeling famished, she made her way over to Shibuya for a bit before entering Tower Records and looted the latest albums. Riku departed the store, a smug look creeping on her face.

Feeling a presence behind her, young Kirihara turned around to see Yin. The Doll woman stood in a perfect posture, her hands laced behind her back, and gazed into Riku's brown eyes. Her mother had paid to have chips embedded in Yin's retinas.

"Find what you want?" Yin asked.

Riku frowned.

"Did Hei send you since he didn't feel like scolding me for skipping school?" she inquired.

"No, I asked Yin to be a decoy," said Hei from behind.

Taken off guard, Riku tried backhanding him, but he grabbed it centimeters from his beaming face. Frustrated, she grinded her teeth.

Hei released her, and said, "Your mother received a call from your school, saying you've gone missing, and that they think you had decorated the wall."

"Decorated?" questioned Riku. "I didn't decorate the wall. I vandalized it!"

"So you were the one who had done that."

Riku opened her mouth to protest, but realized Hei had tricked her and devilishly glared at him.

"Riku, you need to stop these antics," he continued. "You stealing things and causing problems will get you into trouble you won't be able to dig your way out of."

"Like you being the Black Reaper and I having to put up with being your daughter," she challenged. "I'll take my chances with the law."

She turned and walked off, as Hei watched until she disappeared into the crowd.

Xxx

The following day, the school board had gathered and considered on expelling Riku, but since they had no proof she had vandalized the wall, they had suspended her for skipping classes.

Misaki made Riku perform chores for stealing and racking up money on her credit card. While young Kirihara mopped the kitchen, she eavesdropped on her parent's conversation over the phone.

"You have a lead on the Syndicate?" Misaki asked.

Her mother still wore her usual business suit and glasses, and looked elegant since she had stayed in shape. Her hair had lightened, but it held its radiant glow. A guy in his early twenties had asked her out a few days back, but of course, her mother had turned him down.

There was a pause.

"You're not sure?" continued her mother, but fell silent again. "Well, keep me in the loop. Love you."

Riku resumed her chores, as Misaki hung up. Something was amiss. Whatever it was, hopefully it would rid her of Hei.

The following day, Riku stepped onto school grounds where dozens of students were gathered around. She pushed her way through for a front row view of Bakumaru pounding on an underclassman. Infuriated, Riku marched over and kicked a few teeth out of his mouth.

His goon squad yelped in fright and ran off. Bakumaru began scrambling away, but Riku snatched the collar of his shirt.

"Thought… thought you had one more day," he babbled, blood seeping down his chin.

"And you think that gives you reign over everybody?" she yelled. "You're nothing but a coward!"

She released him, allowing Bakumaru to squirm through the crowd. Riku headed towards school, causing the crowd to form a path.

Riku tried to deal with sitting through classes, but found them too boring. She decided to decorate the hallways with toilet paper. Unfortunately, she was caught.

She had been suspended for two days, infuriating Misaki and grounding her daughter for a week.

"It's not fair!" argued Riku.

"Not fair!" questioned Misaki. "You get into fights and vandalize the school! How is that not fair?"

"Because I got nothing else better to do since you and Hei are spending a majority of your time looking for the Syndicate!"

Misaki glared at her, and said, "Go to your room!"

Riku charged in it cursing and slammed the door.

The next day, Riku woke up before her mother and left the apartment. She made her way over to Nina and Miko's place, convincing them to skip school.

As they walked the streets in the late morning, they spotted Gai across it. A thought came to Riku.

"What's up?" Nina asked.

"Wait here," instructed Riku.

Jaywalking the busy street, Riku pretended to gaze at a store, and bumped into him while stealing his cigarettes and lighter. He grabbed at his hat, as it was about to fall and stared at Riku displeased.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sir," she said. "I'm such a klutz."

"That you are," Gai snorted. He narrowed his wrinkled eyelids, as if he was working his brain around something. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"I don't think so? I must have one of those faces."

"Now that I think about it," Gai stared at nothing in particular while placing his right hand under his chin, "I think you do, but I don't remember where I've seen a face like yours?"

Riku walked off and rejoined her friends while he continued to work the rusted gears in his brain. After a short time pondering, and steam pouring out of his ears, Gai shook away it to retrieve his smokes. However, he could not find them, and opened up his coat to peek inside it.

"Son of a gun!" he blabbered. "Don't tell me! My smokes and lighter must have had been knocked out when I bumped into that young girl!"

He started to look around the ground. Unable to spot his lost smokes, he settled on all fours and sniffed the ground like a hound dog.

Riku chuckled at his performance, as she opened the box to pull out a cigarette, and placed it in her mouth. As they rounded the corner, Riku lit the cigarette, puffed on it, and coughed.

"Bad, isn't," smirked Nina.

"Di—disgusting," replied Riku.

They headed down the street, as she continued puffing and hacking up her lungs.

As night fell, and Riku smoking half the pack, she said later to her friends and headed home. She entered to see her mom sitting on the couch looking petrified. Misaki stood and glared at her.

"Do you know how worried I've been!" she asked.

"What, can't get Yin to find me?" questioned Riku, as she headed to her room.

Misaki grabbed her arm to scold her, but then smelled something in the air.

"Have you been smoking?" she asked.

"No, Nina and Miko have been," said Riku.

"Don't lie!"

"I'm not."

Misaki glared at her for a few seconds, and then released her to say, "Just make sure you keep those clothes separated from your other clothes."

"Hai," moaned Riku, and headed into her room.

Xxx

Naoyasu and his younger girlfriend sat in Misaki's apartment. She was a few years younger than Misaki and showed off her figure wearing a snug low cut blue shirt and a short black dress. Long curly dark hair hung down to the middle of her back, her brown eyes glimmering devilishly and had on black high heels.

Riku did not like her.

"What is that you do again, Ayame?" Misaki asked.

"I'm in between jobs at the moment," Naoyasu's girlfriend replied.

"Sure you are!"

"Riku!" scolded her mother. She smiled in defense and said, "Forgive my daughter. She's been a little arrogant since turning thirteen."

"That's quite alright," replied Ayame. "Hopefully one day she and I could be best friends and go out shopping together."

"Oh, I would like that too!" Riku responded, sarcastically.

Everybody except Ayame had caught on.

"Well, we have to be going," said Naoyasu, standing. "Dinner this Sunday? My place?"

"I can't wait, Father," replied Misaki, standing as well. She glanced over her shoulder. "Riku!"

"Oh, me too!" smirked Riku, displeased.

Naoyasu and Ayame fitted on their shoes and exited the apartment.

"Can you show a little respect?" yelled Misaki, rounding on her daughter.

"Not to whore-san!"

"Riku!"

"That's what she is! She's siphoning grandpa's money dry!"

"That's enough, Riku!"

"What's wrong with you, Mom?" Riku shouted, as she stood. "You can't see what she's doing?"

"Yes, I can, and I've had said something to him already. He's just stubborn, like you!"

Riku grinded her teeth and marched into her room. Misaki sighed. She did not know what she was to do. Between the Syndicate, Li and her daughter, she was going to lose her mind.

Xxx

Riku lay on her futon awake at one in the morning. She was bored and wanted another cigarette to see if it would calm her nerves. Perhaps the nicotine in it was making her jittery.

She stood, snatched her theft tools from under the futon and exited her room. Slipping on her shoes, Riku exited the apartment and descended into the garage. She jimmied the Porsche open, sat in it while taking out a miniature device, and clicked it, as she pressed down on the clutch.

Riku smiled at the purr her mother's car made.

After readjusting the seat and mirrors, Riku backed out of the parking spot and threw the car into first, popping the clutch and squawking the back tire. She dropped into second, continuing the burn out, and then leveled out before slipping into third. Riku shot up the ramp sixty kilometers per hour and, as the Porsche approached the exit, she slammed on the brakes, threw the shifter into second while cutting the steering wheel hard right, and drifted around the corner.

Releasing the clutch, she put the pedal to the metal and blazed down the road. As Riku approached a red light, she steadied her fear and shot through the intersection. Cars skidded to a halt, honking their horns and colliding into each other.

Riku drove onto the freeway and forced her way into traffic. The odometer read one hundred kilometers and counting. Coming up on the back of a semi's trailer, Riku turned the steering wheel hard right, making the Porsche feel as if it were going to flip, and straightened it out, shooting by the truck.

Three cars driving side-by-side forced Riku to blaze by onto the narrow shoulder, centimeters from clipping the other car's mirror. She glanced in the rearview mirror, as the three cars flashed their lights.

An SUV cut into her lane, making Riku yank the steering wheel hard left. Feeling the right side tires leaving the ground, she held on firmly, and pulled back after passing the SUV.

The reckless teenager let out a breath of relief and slowed down.

Suddenly, red and blue lights filled the inside of the Porsche. Riku cursed, thinking about out running the cop, but figured best not to and pulled over. No doubt her mother would ground her until she was forty.

The cop exited his car and walked up to the drive side window. Riku rolled down it, looked up at him, and asked, "Is there something wrong, Officer?"

Xxx

Misaki woke to her doorbell ringing. She sluggishly stood from her bed, opened her door, and walked over to the front door to peek through it. Her eyes widened at the sight of Saitou and the new Foreign Affair recruit, Fukazawa, standing behind Riku.

She pulled away from the peephole, swung open the door and furiously glared at her daughter. Averting her eyes, as she pursed her lips, Riku knew what was coming next.

"What is going on here?" Misaki asked.

"Kirihara-san, did you know your daughter was driving your car recklessly on the freeway?" Fukazawa asked, whipping his bowl style black hair about.

He stood half the size as Saitou, had on a black leather coat, blue jeans that looked too tight and white sketchers.

"What?" she questioned. "Of course not! How could she since my keys are in my purse."

"Eh, Riku-chan hot wired your car, Misaki-san," said Saitou.

The middle-aged mother glared at her daughter, and yelled, "You hot wired my car? Why?"

"I was bored," Riku said, bluntly.

"Because you were bored? Young lady, you're grounded until you're forty!"

Riku averted her eyes and muttered, "Knew you'd say that."

"This is no game! You could have hurt or killed someone: mainly yourself!" Misaki looked over at Saitou. "What about my car?"

"It was towed to the police impound," informed Saitou.

Misaki bit her bottom lip from cursing, nodded thanks, as she snatched Riku by her arm and yanked her inside. She closed the door and stared devilishly at her daughter.

"Do you want to give me a bleeding ulcer?" she yelled. "For crying out loud, I gotta go pay a fine and the impound cost just to get my car back! Not only that, my insurance is probably going to skyrocket now! I've had it with your games, Riku! As soon as you start school again, I will be driving you to school every day, and I will be picking you up as well! If you run off after school, I'll make sure your father grabs you out off the streets and brings you home!

"If you thought your life was a disaster before, you're sorely mistaken now! You will have no privacy anymore since I can't trust you!"

"Trust?" shouted Riku. "How dare you say that in front of me? I had put my trust in you and Hei when I was so little, and yet you both held the truth back from me! I've had to endure so much because of it!"

"We had our reason why we didn't tell you! We thought you weren't ready, and apparently you weren't!"

"The HELL I wasn't! You didn't give me a chance! Not to mention, everybody else knew who I was. Even Nina! Do you know how much it kills me everyday when I think about that! Do you know how much that pisses me off! No, you don't! So don't you or Hei dare criticize me again about trust!"

Riku turned and entered her room while slamming the door, causing a picture to fall and shatter into pieces. Misaki stared at the door heart-stricken, as Li stepped out from the shadows to comfort her.

Xxx

Misaki sat in the living room watching the news while Riku decided to hide inside one of the closets. She was furious she couldn't go anywhere, nor have her friends over. When her mother had an errand to run, she was dragged along.

Feeling annoyed, Riku kicked a box and had her father's essentials slip from it. Underneath his old green and blue coat was one of his white masks. The darkened closet gave it an eerie look, making her childhood nightmare return.

Quivering, she picked up the ghastly mask and gazed into its haunting eyes. Riku replaced it with hatred and smashed the mask against the wall. She would no longer be intimidated by it.

Xxx

Riku woke up early on the day she had to return to school. Grabbing her school clothes, she entered the bathroom to shower. Once finished, she threw on a towel, stood in front of the foggy mirror, and wiped at it.

The person before her was weak and egotistical. She needed to be fierce and ruthless to over power the man she loathed. To do so, Riku had to overcome her worst fear.

Young Kirihara opened a drawer, picked up a pair of scissors and cut her hair at neck length. She powdered her face white, put on black eyeliner and dyed a few strands of her hair before her right eye purple. Blood red lipstick was added for the final touch.

Shivers ran down her spine, as Riku stared into the mirror. She did not recognize her own face. It was as if death itself was staring at her.

Removing her towel, Riku dressed in her school clothes. She slipped on her shoes and exited the apartment. Without a doubt, her mother was going to be furious.

She walked through the darkened streets; feeling abandoned, and wondered if BK201 had felt this way. To her, it seemed soothing, as if all her worries had vanished in an instant.

Riku pulled out a cigarette from her purse and lit it. She inhaled the nicotine, dwelling in the aroma and puffed it out. Sitting on a bench, Riku gazed up at the false stars.

How did the sky look before the Gates had appeared? Even though the Internet had pictures of the Big Dipper and moon, it seemed as though it did not give it justice. Kanami and Saitou had said it had a marvelous view, and you would not have guessed it until it was gone.

A couple approached her as they giggled at something. Their attention shifted to Riku, jumped in terror and turned tail.

Riku cracked a smile.

She stood to smother the cigarette under her foot and headed off, as she pulled out and smoked another cigarette.

Reaching the subway, Riku put out her cigarette and placed it behind her right ear before descending the stairs. She swiped her pass over the gate's light and stepped onto the platform. The commuters gathered around the area gasped in fright at her presence.

The train pulled into the station moments later.

Riku stepped onto it and sat down while the other commuters gathered into different cars. A man in a business suit bolted into her car, as the doors slid shut. He smiled for making it on time, but yelped like a girl, as his eyes fell onto Riku. He quickly trotted backwards and entered another car.

Riku sat back in her seat and enjoyed the ride.

Fifteen minutes later, the train pulled into her station. She exited it and ascended to ground level while commuters kept their distance. The sun was peeking over the Gate's wall, giving the city an elegant glow. A light breeze swayed her brown hair, as the cool air soothed her lungs.

Reaching the school, the young Kirihara woman spotted her friends along the wall and approached them. They turned and jumped in fright.

"Holy crap, Riku!" shouted Nina. "You trying to give us a heart attack?"

"Yeah, I mean, what's the deal with your face?" Miko asked. "It looks like BK201's mask."

"So," shrugged Riku before walking onto school grounds.

Her friends followed while shaking their heads. As she approached the school's entrance, other students turned to face her flabbergasted. Riku dwelled in the attention and wondered what her sensei would say.

Suddenly, Riku's sempai stepped before her, presenting a smug look. He was as tall as an average westerner, had dark slit eyes and perky cheeks that looked as though he had had too much Botox. Not to mention, his buzz cut hair looked like a reverse version of a baldhead.

"What's with the new look, Chibi Kuro no Shinigami?" he said.

Riku clenched her teeth while balling up her fist, and punched her sempai, knocking him and his two front teeth out.