Chapter One:

Yui Komori was anything but a rebel. She listened to her elders, did her homework on time, and never broke her curfews. She was what some would call the perfect child. She respected and admired her parents and never once disobeyed them. She cared about her family above all else and her selflessness reflected in how she acted with them.

But less than a month ago, her parents disappeared, leaving her alone.

Having parents who traveled for work, Yui never stayed in one place for too long, so it wasn't news to her that she had to go somewhere different once again. She wasn't too fond of cities, and she preferred a more rural area to live in, but unfortunately her new home was only a couple miles from the heart of one of the largest cities in the country.

Her mother used to be a stay-at-home mom, but a few years back she got a job she rarely talked about. All Yui knew was that it paid well and it was some kind of office job. She could picture her mother working behind a desk, so she never asked too many questions. Her father, on the other hand, never spoke about his work, and disregarded any and all questions that Yui had ever asked him about it. She didn't think it was too strange—feeling that her father would never hide anything important from her. So she never asked him about it after realizing that her questions bothered him.

When it happened, Yui had been in school. When she got home, her mother and father were both out, as usual. But she made dinner and sat at the kitchen table for hours, and neither of them ever came home since then. She'd stayed up all night before finally calling the police and beginning the whole investigation.

But it had been a month, and there was no sign of either of them.

Yui was positive that they were still alive. The simple fact that they had different jobs, and yet both went missing at the same time was her first clue. The second was a note that her father had left her, giving her instructions on what to do if he ever went missing. She knew he was out there somewhere, doing god knew what…

It was the police that had found the note. They scanned it for fingerprints and forgery and the likes, but they all agreed that her father was the writer and his instructions were his alone—Yui was to move into the house of strangers. Her father didn't say his affiliation with these people. For all she knew, her father had chosen a family at random. But hoping that she would be safe, she followed her father's vague instructions.

The only information the police had given her was the location of the home—a couple miles from the city and a few more from the local high school. She was also given the last name of her new guardian family—Sagamaki. There was also a man by the name of Karl Heinz who was the owner of the home, but she wasn't sure what his affiliation was either.

So Yui had packed her things and gotten into the limousine and sat and waited for the car ride to be over. She spent over five hours looking out of the tinted windows, trying to remember which turns she had taken and how she could possibly get home. Unfortunately, after the fifth or sixth turn down back roads, she'd lost her sense of direction. She had no idea what was around here, or how she would even begin trying to get home. She just figured that she would stay here until her father came to get her. And he would come… She trusted him.

For the past month, she'd been living alone in her empty house, hoping her parents would show up at the doorstep and say it was all one big joke. But that never happened, and now she was being thrown into a world she knew nothing of. But that wasn't anything new to her. Another high school. Another community. Another environment. She was used to things not staying the same. The only difference was that this time her parents weren't with her, and that had never happened before. She was wary about being on her own.

And as the limousine finally pulled up a long and narrow driveway, Yui grabbed her bags and prepared to exit the vehicle. When it stopped and parked, she opened her door and stepped outside. The first thing she realized was the weather—it was dreary and foggy, as if a thunderstorm was coming any second now. The clouds were large and dark, and the sun was nowhere in sight. The next thing she noticed was her new home. Simply put, she wasn't expecting something so… extravagant. The home was more like a mansion, and the property was lined with trimmed hedges. There were gardens and fountains lining the driveway, all leading up to the huge edifice. A thick wood surrounded the property, making the mansion the center of a large, open field.

Two double doors stood as the entrance above a small flight of cement steps and a brick path leading out to the driveway.

Yui jumped when the engine of the limousine revved and the driver took off. The weather made the house and the atmosphere very ominous, and she was eager to get inside and meet her new housemates. She also had many questions to ask them about her parents. Maybe they knew something about why they went missing all of a sudden. She assumed that they had to know something if they were in her father's letter. She felt like she could trust these strangers. Her father would never lead her into harm's way. He would send her somewhere that he knew she would be safe. So she would trust in her father's judgment and decision-making.

It wasn't long before she regained her confidence and knocked on the huge double doors. She took a step back and waited for someone to answer. But after at least a minute she frowned and knocked again. When no one came to open the door after another minute had gone by, she checked the handle and realized that it was open. Not wanting to enter without permission, but fearful of the threatening rain clouds, she decided to just take a couple steps inside. She let the door shut gently behind her.

The large home opened up with a high-ceiling foyer. A bright chandelier hung from the very top, and candelabras lined the walls. She wondered how anyone could stand to have to light so many candles and keep them lit, especially when the chandelier served so much light to begin with.

In the center of the foyer was a wide staircase that opened up halfway and wrapped around the walls. The steps were lined with a red carpet on a lighter hardwood floor. The railings on each side looked delicately carved and shined. The people who lived here clearly kept their house very clean. She didn't doubt that there were probably housekeepers running about all day long.

Yui only had a few bags—one large wheeled one, another large tote, and a smaller handbag over her right shoulder. She set the tote on the ground and readjusted the handbag on her shoulder for comfort.

"Hello?" she gently called out. "Is anyone home?"

There was no reply, and Yui looked around. Weren't they expecting her?

She waited for another minute before she couldn't just stand there anymore, looking lost and dumbfounded. She picked up her bag and grabbed the handle of her rolling suitcase, heading off to the right side of the foyer. Large pillars in the middle of the floor made it almost hard to see where she was going. She noticed multiple hallways in her general direction and wondered if she should just wait for someone to notice that she'd arrived. She pulled out her phone and checked the time—she was a few minutes late, but not by much. She stared at the screen for a moment, wondering if she should send her father and mother a text. Of course she'd tried already, multiple times in the past month, but she never received a reply. She knew now would be no different, so she sighed and lowered her phone.

"Hello?" she tried calling out again, a little louder than last time. She turned around to look all around her, but there was still no one here. "Is there someone here?" she asked, feeling like she was shouting in a library.

She sighed and turned back towards the double doors—and froze. A man with orange hair was leaning up against the wall a few yards away. His eyes were closed and he had headphones in his ears. His head was facing downward, but when she looked at him, he slowly tilted his head up and opened his eyes. He looked very tired, and Yui wanted to say something, but his expression was off. He was looking at her in a strange way.

Before she could muster the courage to speak, the man pushed himself off the wall and slowly approached her, his eyes leaving hers every few seconds and swaying to the floor. Yui gulped when he wasn't far from her, and before she knew it, the man was on top of her. He tilted his head, and with a bored expression, he lifted one finger and placed it over his lips, shushing her even though the room was dead silent to begin with.

Yui's breathing stopped when he wrapped one arm around her slowly and suddenly pulled her close to him. And then he tugged further, pressing her breasts flush against him. Her heart was beating loudly in her chest when she felt his warm breath on her neck. Why couldn't she move?

"—Shuu-san."

In an instant, the orange-haired man was away from her, back up against a closer wall, his arms crossed, his eyes closed and his head lowered to the sound of his silent music. Yui jumped when she saw a purple-haired man with glasses glaring at her. Her eyes widened. What was going on?

"I… I was told to come here—"

"I don't care," the new man said, crossing his arms, "about your excuses. Now, tell me who you are and what you're doing here."

Excuses?

"M...My name is Yui Komori," she began, her voice trembling. Why did these two men startle her so much? She was scared of them. "I'm here because… uhm… my father… told me to stay here until he gets back from… wherever he is..."

The purple-haired man glared at her and lifted his chin.

"Take her phone."

In another instant, someone else was beside her and she whipped around and yelped in surprise.

"Oh, now don't start making noises like that or you won't even last a day in here. My brothers can be quite greedy."

This new man wore a hat over his red hair and he had one freckle under his bottom lip. The only reason she could see that was because of how close he was getting to her. He jumped forward suddenly, obviously trying to scare her, and swiped at her hand, snatching her phone. Yui yelped again and then glared at him.

"May I please have that back?" She tried to make her voice sound demanding and confident, but it would barely come out to begin with.

"Mmm, there's those noises again… I can't promise I won't try to stop myself next time."

Yui suddenly didn't care about getting her phone back. She just wanted to get away from these people. They were threatening. Every fiber in her body told her that she was in danger. She didn't understand why, but she knew to trust her gut feelings.

"Now, now, Laito. Be nice to our guest. No one should touch her before we figure out why she's here."

"She probably got lost," the man with the hat said—Laito. "And we all know what happens when little flies wander into a spider's web."

"She said someone told her to come here," the orange-haired man said. His voice was quite and stoic.

"Do you know anything about this, Shuu?" the purple-haired man asked, his attention finally diverted from her.

"There was this phone call a while ago... I almost forgot about it. Something about a girl coming here. I don't remember why."

"There, then that's settled."

"How does that settle anything?" the one with the hat frowned.

"At least we know she didn't come in here by accident."

"Excuse me..." Yui suddenly said, and the three strange men turned to her. "You don't know why I'm here?"

"Please enlighten us," the purple-haired man replied snottily, crossing his arms again and pushing up his glasses with his pointer finger.

"No, I… I don't know. I was hoping that you would know… My father—"

"Again with your father," a new voice snapped. "Who is this man? Who dares send his frail human daughter into our home and expect anything less than the worst?" Yui turned to find a white-haired man standing halfway down the wide flight of stairs, glaring daggers at her.

"Subaru… Do you know anything about this?"

"Tch," the man scowled, and headed up the stairs without another word.

"Well, if no one knows..."

"Where is Karl Heinz?" Yui asked, and the three man all looked at her in shock. "He owns this house, correct? May I speak with him?"

"Hopefully you never have the pleasure of meeting that man," the purple-haired man frowned. "How do you know his name?"

"I was told he owns this house."

"Technically, that's true."

There was an awkward moment of silence and Yui glanced back at the man with the hat, who was now going through her phone.

"May I have that back, please?" she repeated, holding out her hand. The man took a moment to glance at her and laugh before turning and heading off without another word, taking her cell phone with him, still playing with it. "You can't just take that..." she added weakly, turning back to the other two. She didn't expect either of them to help her, but she didn't know what else to do or say.

"You won't need that anymore," the purple-haired man sad quickly, pushing up his glasses again. "Someone will be along to take your bags. Until we find out why you were sent here, please try not to get yourself hurt. Feel free to pick out one of the rooms on the second floor for yourself."

Yui wanted to reply, but everyone was gone in the next second. They just vanished into thin air. She looked down and realized that her bags were gone as well. She was so confused, and her body was telling her to run away, but where could she go? These people had her things and her phone. And she was just offered a room. It was strange, but she still trusted her father's judgment, and supposed that this was the best thing for her right now. Even though it was strange, and she got strange vibes from the people and the atmosphere, she decided that it would be in her best interest to stay. This was also her only resource to find out where her father and mother were. She made a mental promise to herself to get out if she had a serious reason to feel like she was in danger, but until then… she was going to live here for a little while...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

She found a long hallway just at the top of the stairs in the foyer, and each room she looked in was a bedroom. She had just chosen one at random and stepped inside. Her bags weren't in there, and she wasn't even sure if she was going to get her things back at all. Why was she still here? That was a better question. This place felt like a prison, despite the elegant architecture and the extravagant living conditions. The bedroom was far from simple, just like the rest of the house. There was a king-size bed, a large dresser, closet, and even a vanity. There was also a pair of doors leading out to a small deck. The only thing she could think of that was lacking was the fact that it didn't have a bathroom attached. But she supposed with all the bedrooms in the house, that would be difficult. Mansions weren't exactly hotels…

Yui walked over to the glass double doors and pushed them open. She stepped outside and realized that this view was the back of the house. She hadn't see this when she arrived. The garden sin the back were aligned like a maze. There were quite a few rows of flowers and beds sat in square opening and crossroads between hedges. And she even thought she could see a garden of vegetables way in the back, closer to the woods than anything else.

Even though the people here were intimidating and strange, she was glad she didn't end up in some back-woods shed with a bunch of murderers… not that her father would send her to a place like that anyway, but it was better to look at the bright side of things.

"So you're the new toy?"

Yui jumped and whirled when she heard a voice directly behind her. He eyes widened when she was met with a young man with light purple hair, almost exactly her height, his eyes staring directly into hers less than a foot away from her face. She stumbled backward and hit the railing of the deck, her instincts reminding her that she was quite a distance from the ground below.

"Wh… Who are you?" she asked shakily.

The young man—Yui would have even described him as a boy—pointed behind him and motioned to Yui's bags. She also noticed a teddy bear in the boy's arms. It looked old and worn and sewn back together a few times.

"Oh… you brought my things… Thank y—"

"Shut up."

Yui froze. Even though this one seemed younger than the rest of the people in this house, she got even more threatening vibes from him. His eyes held no ounce of emotion, as if he could kill without a second thought. How could anyone be like that?

"D… Did you need something from me?" Yui asked warily.

"Don't be stupid. If I wanted anything, I could just take it from you. I wouldn't need your permission. How dare you ask me if I need something. You think I can't take care of myself...? Is that it?! Do you need me to prove it to you?! What do you know?! You're just a toy!"

Yui's eyes were wider than they'd ever been in her whole life. She was cornered on the deck. If this boy wanted to do anything to her, which now seemed likely, he would have no problem causing her harm. But as quickly as the boy was angered, he went back to being… content. He looked at his teddy bear and let loose a creepy smile. Then he started laughing and within a few seconds it became hysterical laughter. Yui just watched him, carefully, waiting for some kind of attack.

"Teddy says I shouldn't get mad at my toys like that," he suddenly said, rocking the stuffed bear back and forth in the air. "He reminded me what happens when I get mad at my toys… And I don't want to break you just yet. So try not to say anything that will make me mad, okay?" The boy smiled, turned around, and headed for the door. Yui stayed frozen-still until he closed it behind him.

She didn't know what to do. Everything told her that she needed to get out of here. These people were clearly dangerous. She wasn't a toy. What was that all about? And breaking her? What was that even supposed to mean? If they planned on hurting her, then she needed to get away from here as quickly as possible. She needed to just take what she needed and get out. She would leave everything else in here and just go. That was her only option.

She quickly rummaged through her bags for all her money and identification. She stuffed it all into a small bag with a strap and swung it over her shoulder. She grabbed just a couple pairs of underwear and tried not to look at the rest of the things she would be leaving behind, like photos and hand-me-down clothes from her mother. She worried about not having her phone, but it wasn't worth it to try and get it back at this point.

With her one bag, she quickly stepped outside of the extravagant bedroom and headed into the hallway. Thankfully, she knew her way back, and it wasn't a long walk back to the entrance. She hit the staircase at a slow jog and was in front of the door with no trouble in less than a minute. She didn't even glance behind her to check if anyone was watching. She just opened the door slowly, without making any loud noises, and closed it behind her in a hurry. Then she took off running down the driveway.

It took her a while to run the distance to the road, but she made it and paused to take a quick break, her hands on her knees. She could hear the hustle and bustle of the city not too far away from where she was, so she ignored the butterflies in her stomach from running away and the dark of the nighttime, and took off again at a slow jog, towards the sounds and smells of a busier area. Maybe there she would be able to find a phone and call the police. If not, she had enough money to afford a cheap motel for a few nights.

In about ten minutes, Yui found herself on the edges of the nearby city, and sighing with relief. She slowed her pace back to a normal walk and headed down the nearest sidewalk. There was a small crowd around, but not many because of how late it was getting. Families with children were all getting into their cars to go home, but the younger crowd stayed out. There were bars and clubs on the edge of the city, so Yui kept walking, hoping that she would see something like a bank or a post office instead of strip clubs and bars. She just kept her head down and kept walking.

She glanced up once when she heard a catcall and some whistles, but fortunately, they weren't for her. She picked up her pace a bit and looked around to see where she was. She did a double-take when she thought she saw the red-haired man in the hat through a small group of people, but when she blinked a few times and he was gone, she knew it had to be her imagination. She kept going.

She paused when she looked up and saw trees. Why did she hit a wooded area? This was supposed to be the road that went into the heart of the city. Had she taken a wrong turn when her head was down? She turned around and looked left and right, obviously lost. A man must have noticed because he started heading towards her. Yui saw him and froze again, feeling that same sensation of fear from before in the mansion.

"Can I help you, little miss?" the man asked, and he seemed sincere enough. "Are you lost?"

"Uhm… if you wouldn't mind, could I borrow your phone please?" Yui stammered. "I just need to make a quick call." She needed to call the police and have them come get her. She had no car and she hadn't seen a single taxi yet.

"Yea, I, uh, left it in my car, actually… Just come with me and I'll let you borrow it." The man motioned for her to follow and turned and walked further down the road, keeping one eye on her.

Yui could sense that this was a trap. She needed to find a way to call the police… right now. She wasn't safe out here. This wasn't the part of the city that she thought she was in. Finally letting herself raise her head to look around gave that away. She could see dark alleyways down every street, off every corner. People were leaning against walls, smoking things and laughing drunkenly. A few of them watched her with a bottle in their hands. And the man had just paused and motioned for her to come with him again. He wore a strange smirk.

"I actually think I have my phone on me. Sorry to bother you. Thank you," she said quickly, turning and rushing away in the opposite direction. She didn't look back as she walked. She just hoped to god that she wouldn't start hearing loud footsteps behind her.

"Where do you think you're going?" A voice called, and Yui could see it was from a man standing directly in her way. She held her breath and walked straight at him, trying to get him to let her pass, but as soon as she was close enough, he grabbed her with one arm and whipped her around, pulling her into an alley.

The first thing she did was scream.

A hand was clamped over her mouth after a few seconds and she was forced onto the ground by strong hands. She knew she had to fight, but her body wasn't responding to her need out of fear. She kicked her legs a little bit, but another set of hands held her down by her ankles. She twisted around and squirmed until she realized that it was the man she had asked for the phone from.

"Gotcha, little miss," he smiled, showing two rows of yellowed, rotting teeth. The men were together, and there were more of them from the look of things. There was a whole group, of five or six. And she'd been their prey. She'd had her head down so long that she didn't realize that she was being herded like a lamb.

They held her down, and even if she used all her strength, with the three holding her in place, she wouldn't be able to get away. She wouldn't even be able to hurt any of them. She would just die. She considered that fact that if she didn't fight, they would just hurt her and let her go, but that seemed naive… No, these men were going to do whatever they pleased. And then she was going to die. She could see it in their faces—their lack of caring for others. They didn't even like each other. They just all had the same goal—her.

She didn't realize she had been crying until the one man's hand slipped off her face from the wetness on her cheeks. He slapped her hard, and then covered her mouth again. She saw another man bend down, and the silver sheen of a blade flashed in front of her eyes. She cried harder, her sobs and mental pleas racking her body harder than she was fighting them.

When she felt a blade pierce the skin on her upper thigh, she instinctively opened her mouth so that the man's hand would slip inside, and she bit down hard on a finger, tasting blood. The man shrieked and tumbled backward, screaming a long list of profanities.

"Fuckin-A, man! Just slice her tongue out. And cut her fucking lips off. And then I'm gonna punch her until all her fucking teeth fall out and her jaw snaps. I wanna fuck her face when she can't bite nobody. Jesus fucking christ. You little cunt."

"Help meeeee!" Yui screamed, realizing that her mouth was finally free and the shock wasn't making her freeze up at the moment. A hand slapped her across the face and then the same, now bloody hand cupped her mouth again. She could taste it dripping down her throat. She had to involuntarily swallow some and it made her gag.

"Will ya shut you' fucking mouth? It's not like anyone 'round here is gon' help you anyway. Unless you're lookin' fo' another kinda' help." The other men laughed, but Yui didn't get what was funny about that.

Suddenly, she was dragged to her feet and her back was slammed against a brick wall, expelling all the oxygen from her body in one force. A punch to her ribs made her double over, but another pair of hands brought her back up and slammed the back of her head against the wall. She saw stars.

When she felt a hand grope her chest, she kicked out, and a low yelp made her think that she hit something important. A flurry of curses followed and a backhand across her face slammed her cheek into the brick. She felt a trickle of blood down her face and into her hair. She had such a massive headache and she felt like vomiting. She tried to clutch at her face to ease the pain, but her hands were pinned as well, one being held and the other behind her back, feeling as if it would snap at any moment.

"That smells good..." Yui heard a familiar voice say, and then that same voice let out a few uncomfortable moans of pleasure. "That's something special if you ask me. And blood like that should never go to waste..."

She turned her head and painfully opened one eye. The man with the hat was standing at the mouth of the alleyway, watching her. His eyes were on her and he was smirking. Was he in on this? Did he ask these men to do this to her?

"Why are you doing something like this to such a fragile little girl, hmm?" He asked—Laito, was his name… "Teaming up on one little human doesn't seem very fair to me."

"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to?" the man with the bleeding finger snapped. So they weren't together… "Know your place, kid. Get the fuck outta here before we decide that we wanna play with you, too."

"Oh, but I love games," Laito sang, clapping his hands together a few times. What the hell was going on? His face suddenly got very dark. "And so do my brothers..."

Yui shrieked when she heard what sounded like a wrecking ball hit the wall to the left of her head, and pieces of something hit her face and she breathed in some kind of dust. Her headache intensified, but she was instantly released and she hit the ground like a heavy garbage bag, sprawling. He first instinct was to cradle the injury on her face, and when she brought her hand up, it was immediately covered in blood—her blood.

When the fear began to subside, pain became her whole world. She felt the sting of the deep cut on her thigh and the back of her head had to have at least a large bump. And the side of her face felt torn, like her skin had turned to ribbons. All she could do was softly groan as the pain forced her into submission. She was blissfully unaware of the fact that the fighting around her was long-over—a few men were dead on the sidewalk and the others had fled for their lives.

Yui was lifted into the air by strong hands and then cradled gently. She looked up and saw a patch of white hair and red eyes—glowing red eyes. They weren't watching her, but she knew that these were the eyes of one of the men in the mansion. He'd been the one on the stairs that hadn't said much. And even though she still feared them… they'd saved her.

"Thank you," she tried to say, but her voice didn't even come out.

And as the bleak darkness that threatened to overtake her swirled into her vision, the only thing she could see were the bright red eyes of her savior shining through the blackness that slipped her into unconsciousness.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yui's world opened up a little too brightly and she squinted in the light. She heard the sound of shudders being drawn and then the darkness returned and she tried to look around again. All she could see was the ceiling.

"Where… am I?" she whispered, hearing footsteps nearby.

"Where you should have stayed," a voice replied, sounding terse and irritated. Yui's mind was drawing a blank. What was this place? Where was her father?

"What happened to me? I feel awful..." She had a headache that vibrated her skull painfully, and her whole body was sore. Everything hurt, some things more than others.

"You would have been killed if Subaru and Laito hadn't followed you. You should thank them when you see them."

She still couldn't see who was talking, and she didn't have the strength or energy to move her head to look around the room. She could feel a blanket over her and a pillow under her head. The ceiling was white and spotless.

"I… don't remember… my parents… they're missing. I have to call the police and tell them… I need to find them. I have to talk to my father..."

"You hit your head pretty hard," a new voice said.

"We can't allow you to have contact with the outside world for a while."

"You lost a lot of blood… Which is bad for us, too, you know."

"We'll have you back on your feet in a few days. Until then… just don't run off again. A word of advice—if you leave this house, you're dead. I'm starting to understand why you were instructed to come here. You're welcome to leave whenever you want, but I would advise against it."

"I don't… understand. I can… barely… remember..."

"Just get better quickly. Then I'll explain things further to you."