Hey! Well, I'd like to say that this is my first fanfic and I apologize if the spacing is weird or if I mess anything else up. I'd love some feedback so please, send me a review.

Also; the reason I chose Bankotsu instead of some other character (such as one that lived, maybe) was because I liked him. I don't think he deserved to die the way he did.

This chapter is basically an introduction to the story. Please, be patient with my storytelling.

"Bankotsu. It's time for dinner, come eat!"

My mother called me, her voice reaching my ears moments after my stomach growled. Mother always had good timing. I stood up and began running to our home. She was waiting just outside the door, smiling at me.

Mother smiled all the time. She was always smiling. "Smiling keeps the demons away," she used to say. I always believed her. Even now, even though-

No. I'm getting ahead of myself.

Mother was always smiling. She said it kept the demons away. I always believed her, because mother was the only one I trusted. "What's for dinner, Mother?"

"Just some fish, Bankotsu. Nothing special."

She was wrong. Fish was special. Meals at all were special, at least in the conditions we lived in. Father was never home, or at least, almost never home. I was only ten, and more often than not I had to feed us both. Mother did her very best. She would do whatever she could to get us food, but not many people wanted to hire her. They had their own ways of getting their necessities and there was virtually nothing my mother could do that would improve their lives even a little. So we had many food-less 'meals'.

But as Mother would say, we mustn't be greedy. They earned what they had. We must make our own way.

She ushered me inside and sat me on the floor, and then walked outside to get the fish. Mother wouldn't cook in the house. 'Fire is a hazard, Bankotsu. And anyone who thinks it's safe is a hazard to themselves, and all around them.' It didn't take long before we were sitting down. She handed me my fish and then prayed.

"Why do we pray, Mother?"

"We must always pray, Bankotsu."

"Why Mother?"

"Our faith assures our afterlife."

She firmly believed in an afterlife. Mother would always tell me about heaven before I fell asleep, which would fill my dreams with vibrant pictures of any happy times I've had in my life. Mother and I eating our meager dinners. Mother and I laughing. Mother and I playing a child's game. Mother and I talking. Mother and I- doing just about anything.

"Mother, why is Father never home?"

Any question about my father would bring a wishful glint into my mother's eyes. "Your father is a good man, Bankotsu. Don't ever think badly of him. Promise me you won't ever think badly of him."

"I promise Mother."

That is one of the two promises I would break.

I finished my fish all too quickly, and Mother insisted that I put the questions to rest for the night. She them sent me out to play, but bade me be back before the sun went down.

I ran outside and called for my friend. She quickly approached.

A cat. Her eyes were florescent green and her pelt was calico. My only friend, her name was Cat. I hadn't chosen to name her Cat, the people of the village had. Cat was a better-than-decent rat hunter, and quite well liked by the village. Not only that, she was clever.

"Hello Cat." I'd greet her, then before you knew it I'd be lying down- maybe watching the clouds- and she's snuggle in the crook of my arm.

It would get dark, and I'd have to go inside. When it was dark the demons would come, preying on the men, women, and children of the village. If I didn't come home before dark Mother would search for me, and then the demons may get her. Even though I was only ten, I knew that if Mother died I would never be able to live with myself.

So I returned faithfully each night before dark, when Mother would lay me down to sleep and tell me stories of the mortal heaven.

"Heaven, Bankotsu, is for those who believe. It's for those that pray and hope and love. You do not have to be completely good to go to it, like some monks and other holy men may believe. No. All men are worthy of being redeemed. Heaven isn't as choosy as we humans. And it is more loyal than we ever are. It will wait for you, even if you lose your way. It will wait for you until you leave this world."

Then she'd tell me that love and hope were not just essential to making it to heaven, but they also help you live a full life. Before I fell asleep each night she would kiss my forehead and say quietly, "I wish you a full life, my son."

Life with my mother was good. It was loving, and hopeful, and promising. Then Father would come home, and it would be even happier.

It went on like that, quiet and peaceful. But as all good things do, it ended.