Gehenna's Rogue Gallery: Sakura

'You give loyalty, you'll get it back. You give love, you'll get it back'

~Tommy Lasorda~

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I love the way her rainbow hair sprawls out over the pillow, every colour illuminated by the night-time neon. Even when laid beside Roux, the scoundrel I’m forced to be civil with, she is the sole focus of my sight. Her naked body is covered elegantly yet scantily by the blanket. Her arms are connected neither to me nor Roux. Instead, she is curled into herself, twitching lightly from undoubtedly magnificent dreams.

I am blessed to have Mally as my love in my life. It must be two years now that we’ve been living here, the three of us occupying this apartment towering over the mayhem of the city’s media central. About two years now I’ve been operating under the identity of Sakura. Likewise with Roux, though I imagine Mally has been toying with her current identity quite some time before making the decision to move. It’s one of the things I find so admirable about her. That dedication to even the simplest of whims, no matter how absurd they may appear on the surface. Her devotion to unpredictability is something I aspire to embody. Although I understand Roux shares a similar sentiment, he couldn’t understand the personal passion behind my devotion.

The lazy red-haired bastard fell into sleep not long before Mally did after a night of romantic group bonding. Unlike them, I could not bring myself to sleep at that moment in time. I desired a little more time to gaze upon my beloved. Thus, I’ve found myself rather vigilant.. Using the mental ability I was blessed with, my diamond brain lulls itself into a state of zen.  In between drinking in the allure of her slumbering state, I keep my eyes and ears fixated on the ambience of the apartment. My duty for tonight has become protection. Even Roux has garnered my guard tonight. His care for Mally is evident enough that I can forgive his existence in our relationship. Besides the case, it is not unusual for Mally’s…I mean our apartment to become ransacked by thieves and those that feel they have been thoroughly screwed over by the supposed ‘Devil’. Several times we have been caught off guard, all of us, in our sleep. This tends to result in half-dressed, half-awake skirmishes with lesser thugs. Other times at least one of us is alert, waiting, hungry for blood. Someone winds up slashed, shot or slaughtered.

The front door clicks open.

Reflexively my hands lunge for the katana propped up against the bedside table, still sheathed. Delicately shifting the blanket from myself, I am suddenly reminded that I too am currently bare-skinned. No matter though. The kimono lingerie draped over the bed’s edge coupled with the matching lacy thong will suffice for clothes. It may be a little skimpy, but it will provide flexibility at least. I dress myself swiftly, taking care not to wake the other two. I can deal with this little situation myself. Seizing my weapon once again, I exit the bedroom, softly locking the door into place.

Approaching the front room, I find myself greeted by a group consisting of no more than three unmasked ruffians looting the ornaments and badly attempting to hack the tech. Two of them I recognise from just the other week. They were a couple who had come to request Mally’s service in locating their lost child. Judging by the third individual’s partially smaller stature I’d gather they are the child the couple sought to find. Why they are now endeavouring to rob our apartment is beyond my general concerns. They are trespassers. As one of Mally’s delegated bodyguards I shall dispose of the threat. I step into view of them, wrapping one hand around the katana’s handle, poised for combat.

“Drop everything and leave now. If you refuse to comply I will be forced to attack” I announce with hushed authority. The three ruffians appear startled. All of them shift their attention to me. The youngest drops the Parisian vase they were holding, shattering it into miniscule, scattered pieces across the floor. A smirk of malevolent accomplishment stretches out across their face.. My eye twitches. I unsheathe the blade ever so slightly with my thumb.

“Leave. Now. I can and will kill you” I manage to growl in my mother tongue. The older appearing of the couple laughs it off. Their laugh is guttural, disgusting.

“Dressed like that? Give it up darling, go back to bed with your honey and let us get on with things”

A well of rage is pooling inside of me. I draw my blade, casting the sheath aside. Moving into a fighting stance, my blade poised to strike, I decide to offer the wrongdoers one last chance to repent.

“This is your final warning. Put down the possessions and leave immediately”

The younger looking half of the couple pipes up this time. Their voice is sweet, sickeningly so and dripping with venom.

“It’s not like your boss didn’t deserve this sweetie”

The well of rage flows over. A single drop hits the floor in my head. I am unleashed.

I advance with the ferocity of a mother tiger, slashing quickly, cleanly, viciously. The younger one’s arm hits the floor with distinct splat. I don’t bother to curse for the blood staining the carpet. I’ll scrub it out later. I zone it out, along with everything currently unnecessary in that moment. My surroundings are a blank canvas stained only by the three targets. One is spurting a waterfall of crimson. The non-severed arm of the injured one lashes out with a rusty machete at my shoulder. I stride backwards, promptly shuffling around them to focus on the healthy targets. The oldest one fires off several rounds of a pistol. I duck left, weave right, dodge below, staying low and thrusting the blade directly into their abdomen. The target collapses, clutching at the wound in a panicked attempt to hold in their insides. Within a minute they give up and keel over. Their guts spill out on to the floor in an intricate pattern. I shrug it off to face the last target. To my misfortune the time it took to deal with the others allowed for them to source an opportune place to station themselves. The moment I twist to face them, a spiked chain whips out, stabbing itself into the arm holding the katana. Through instinct of pain I drop the blade. Through adrenaline I rip the spike from my flesh. I grit my teeth to bear the searing pain of the wound. In this moment I release my focus. The full atmosphere of my surroundings floods my senses once again.

A glint from the bedroom doorway catches the corner of my eye. This is a signal I’m familiar with. So much for dealing with this situation alone. I drop to my knees and feign agony worse than I’m actually experiencing. The final target flickers back to that arrogant smirk once again. They lean down, pilfering the pistol from their parent’s corpse. Loading it as they walk, they slink towards me to deliver the final blow.

Step, step, closer…

The shot rings loudly across the room, bursting through the target’s skull. A small splattering of brain matter becomes spread further across the floor by the corpse toppling over. I stand myself up, glancing with regret over at my assistant. Roux is leaning coolly against the wall, dressed only in a pair of boxers. In one of his hands is a rifle, lowered to point at the ground. The other is grasping a cigarette and lighter. He surveys the scene with tired eyes.

“Quels imbéciles” he mutters, tutting mockingly. Roux shambles towards the couch, chucking down the rifle before collapsing onto the cushions. His slender fingers place the cigarette between his teeth. With his hands freed up he sparks it up and takes a long drag.

“Soyez tranquille la prochaine fois” he moans between his next drag. Such words prove why the man irritates me. I trudge over to him, still clutching at my wounded arm.

“I did try to be quiet you imbecile. They, however, chose not to do the same” I retort, gesturing to the mangled corpses invading the room. He shrugs me off, continuing to smoke.

“Darlings, please don’t argue. You both performed wonderfully”

That melodic tone!

Mally strolls with the grace of a dancer towards us, gingerly avoiding the blood and viscera. She stands between us, leaning on the back of the sofa. Roux leans his head back to look a her. Some semblance of a smile forms around the cigarette dangling from his teeth. I cannot hold myself from grinning as the mere aura of her presence pervades my senses in the best way. Mally reaches out both her hands, ruffling Roux’s hair with one, stroking my cheek with the other. My heart flutters, then calms. A sigh of happiness manages to sneak its way out of my lips. Roux on the other hand openly moans. That boy has no sense of restraint. I ignore it as best I can though. Instead I focus on the comforting face of my beloved. Even when interrupted from sleep, her eyes remain bright and her tone chipper. She’s an enviable enigma.

Her hand moves lower, feather soft fingers tenderly caressing the wound I’d briefly forgotten about. I flinch without thinking, causing her cheerful smile to droop into concern. I curse internally. My heart flutters again, then pounds with frustration that I’ve upset her.

“Sakura darling, you know I always worry about these things happening with you on the front lines all the time” She remarks. Her tone sounds too close to disappointment for my comfort. A weight of guilt drop on my shoulders, dragging my body to the ground. I kneel down, placing my hands and feet on the floor, my whole being begging for forgiveness.

“Please, Mally, forgive me. I will not allow such mistakes to happen again!”

Mally exudes a sigh. I find myself gently being pulled from the floor to face her. She pulls me close and connects her supple lips to mine. Once again I’m overcome with a happiness that causes my heart to flutter and calm itself. Somewhere in the back of my senses I hear Roux grunt. She pulls away and chuckles.

“Don’t act like I’m scolding you dear, I just worry for you. After all, I love you”

The ache in my arm numbs upon hearing those words. Roux grunts again, turning away his head to sulk. Mally tuts and turns to place a kiss on his forehead.

“Je t'aime aussi, you silly boy. Now, go fetch the medical supplies so we can patch up Sakura and go to bed” she speaks in the same sweet tone to him. With newfound energy he pulls himself off of the sofa to retrieve the first aid kit. Mally takes his place, patting the space behind her, bright blue eyes peering up towards me in anticipation.

“Come join me Sakura. I’ll take care of you”