Author notes: This interlude is about incidents happened 3 years ago. It will be separated into two parts, each explained with different POVs. Enjoy!

3 Years Before

Mamoru (note: if you remember the previous chapters, Mamoru is Akari's deceased mother.)

Mamoru believed she came to the world with luck in her blood. She was born to her father and mother who loved her more than themselves. She was given a lovely younger brother two years later. She and her family lived in a mansion inherited from her grandparents, served by maids and servants. She grew up as a beautiful young lady, with dark brown lustrous hair and eyes that looked like jades. Despite her upbringing was for her to be an elegant lady like her mother, her character contradicted. She hated acting all high and noble. She hated wearing dresses that tripped her once in a while. She hated wearing make-up that she believed was a devil's product to control women's hearts. She hated talking and acting like a noble when she hated being one.

One thing she didn't hate was her name. Mamoru meant protecting. Her intuition told her from the moment she was born, Mamoru was destined to protect someone. Someone so dear that she would do so with the cost of her own.

Mamoru sounded like a boy's name, but she liked it. The name had some tough personality in it. That's why she was a girl with boyish qualities—dauntless, insolent, straightforward, sharp-witted. She rather hung out with boys instead of girls because she couldn't resist their daily melodramatic acts. Boys were so confortable to be with because they were less dramatic.

The boys she hung out with, at first they were wary that she was a spoiled princess or a soft polite girl because she was pretty. But she was neither. Slowly they grew accustomed to her and accepted her as one of their bros. Mamoru loved them—the more platonic and friendly love, not the romantic one. But there was one who constantly drew her attention.

A troublemaker, she would call him. Because Mamoru was probably the only one in her gang who practiced martial arts, she was always there whenever he got in trouble. Technically, Okumura Akira didn't get into trouble because he was a delinquent. He was a knucklehead who rushes into situations without hesitation. He was the happy-go-lucky, chirpy, carefree, optimistic guy who believed conflicts can be solved peacefully. Not all though. Sometimes he just aggravated the situation and Mamoru had to save his ass. She thought guys like this were extinct—prehistoric dinosaurs that shouldn't roam in an era so dangerous.

Okumura Akira was probably the only one left of his kind. Mamoru hoped she never meet anyone like him again.

It was a long period till Mamoru realized she liked him. She didn't know how he felt about her. She was eager to find out. So she used cunning ideas to trick him to fall for her. It proved easier than she thought because Akira had long loved her but was too timid to tell. After all, she emanated the aura of a dominating woman who intimidated every suitor.

Akira went through a lot of hardships to prove their love was solid. Mamoru's brother, Shou, challenged him to a fight where Shou beat the crap out of the poor guy. Shou was a reigning champion in tae-kwondo while Akira was taller and scrawny but nonetheless weaker and more fragile. Despite being beaten Akira didn't give up—like his name, he pulled through.

His words resonated in her mind every day. "I'll never give up! I'll never give up on Mamoru because I love her so damn much!"

That's when Mamoru finally realized—the one she was destined to protect was him, Okumura Akira.

After a year, they got married. Thankfully, Mamoru was still lucky enough to be blessed with a daughter, Akari even if she was diagnosed unable to have one. Akari was a lovely little girl who inherited her mother's features and her father's personalities. She was happy-go-lucky, cheerful, optimistic and enjoyed food just as much as Mamoru did. She was the most adorable kid in the neighbourhood, earning plenty of affection from the neighbours. Mamoru loved her as much as she loved Akira. The moment the fragile baby sluiced out from her womb, covered in her blood, she knew—Akari was another she needed to protect.

Akari became 12 this year. Today, they were going to meet up with their old friend, Kenji. They've known each other since mid-school. Even when Kenji was young, he was a good-looking charming man—still was now.

Kenji's eyes sparkled as he first saw Akari. He patted her head as he greeted her. "Hello, Akari-chan. I'm Isogai Kenji, your parents' good friend. You can call me Kenji-niisan."

Akira coughed as he stood beside him. "Nii-san? What are you? 20? You sound like a pedophile." He stroked his daughter's hair. "Call him Uncle Kenji."

Kenji glared at him. "I still look young and girls still love me."

Akira laughed as if he said a joke. Mamoru agreed silently. Kenji may still look young but his wrinkles were apparent. No young girl would have the conscience to like him—except his wife of course. "Please. You have three children. Still young, huh?"

Kenji continued to glare daggers at him. "You're just jealous I got three."

Akira sobbed. Here he goes again, Mamoru thought. "I want another one too you know. Society is so advanced now we can get test-tube babies. Ahh... I just want one more sibling for my Aka-chan so she doesn't feel lonely~~" Mamoru knew her husband well to realize that he directed the words at her instead.

Mamoru sighed. A child was enough for her. "If you're really that desperate, go find another wife," she said sternly.

Akira froze. She could see tears in his eyes. She bet he's feigning it to get pity. Mamoru decided to beat him as his game. She forced tears out of her eyes—an easy trick for her to con people believing she was frail. "Akira-chaaaan~~ do you know how hard is it to carry a baby 10 months in you? You men will never understaaaaaaaand~~ You just sit and wait for the baby while I have to push it out of me with all my life~~" she cried. Akira flustered. He was never good at handling crying women, especially his wife. By now he should have known she was faking the tears, but he loved her too much to even care.

Kenji smirked. Akari stared at them with confusion. She tugged her shirt. "Mommy don't cry. Bad Daddy! You made mommy cry!"

Akira fidgeted. "Aka-chan! I didn't mean to make your mommy cry."

Kenji intervened, saying he must stop the laughter that pained his stomach. He returned his focus to Akari. "Akari-chan, where you wanna go today?"

Akari's eyebrows creased in contemplation; an inherited trait from her father. "Disneyland! I want to see Daddy in a princess dress!"

Mamoru chuckled while Akira coughed like he had a frog stuck in his throat. He gave Mamoru a 'are you serious' look and she nodded. His face paled, devoid of any colour.

"Ok then! Disneyland it is!" Kenji said as he pumped his fists in the air with Akari.

Akira looked like he was about to faint. "Dear God help me." He glared at Kenji, who got excited to see his best friend in a girly dress. "Kenji! I swear I'll put you in one!"

"Huh?! What was that you scrawny bamboo stick, poor excuse for a human male?!"

Despite Akira being a pacifist, somehow he always quarreled with Kenji. It was as if they were sworn enemies in their previous life. Mamoru sighed. She hated being the intervener to their heated quarrel. Of all times why the heck they chose to quarrel in front of my child?

Mamoru glared at them. Her glare was intense as it struck fear and sent chills down their spines. She covered her child's ears as she began her reprimanding. She didn't want to spoil her image as a kind gentle mother. "You two knuckleheads argue for just one second—scratch that, if you even have a smidgen of thought to argue in front of my Akari I'll peel your skins off alive."

They shut up. Apologetically they stared at her, begging for her forgiveness, knowing her wrath was not a force to be reckoned with. They spoke in hushed whispers, hoping she can't hear them. But she had a guess they were badmouthing her.

Childish.

Later, they got into Akira's car. Kenji sat shotgun while Mamoru and her child sat at the back. It will take some time to reach their destination but they were not in a rush. They wanted to enjoy the moment with each other.

"Say," Kenji spoke as he turned to the back. "Akari's 12 right? She's just the same age as my eldest child. I bet they will be good friends."

"Why didn't you bring them out today?" Mamoru asked. She was eager to meet his family. His wife, a good acquaintance of hers, was the housewife. They were blessed with three children—two boys and a girl. Kenji was the sole breadwinner because his wife often sick.

"They were lazy," he spat his tongue. "When I get home, I'll tell them so much stories of Disneyland they'll regret joining me! Haha!" he laughed. Mamoru smiled. Kenji's probably a good father to his children, though a little bit childish like Akira.

What she didn't predict was he will never get home. So will her and her husband.

"Do you have a photo?" Mamoru asked. He handed her a photo in his wallet. There were three children. The boy in the centre was the eldest, she could tell, as he looked handsome and mature. The two on both his sides were younger. But all three had a significant telltale sign that on first sight, they know these three were Kenji's offspring. They had hair on top of their heads that resembled a pair of antennas. Despite that tiny flaw, the three looked beautiful. She was a mother. She understood unadulterated children were beautiful before they were poisoned by the society's toxic.

"What's his name? The one in the centre?"

Kenji smirks with pride. "Yuuma. I call him Yuu-chan."

"You know you sound like a pedophile, right?" Akira grumbled. His eyes fixated on the road in front of him.

"Shut up. That's my child. I can call him whatever I want."

"Pe-do-phile," Akira spat the syllables from his mouth like they were poison.

Mamoru sighed. "You better focus on the road, Okumura."

Akari gazed intently at the photo. "I want to meet him. He looks nice. And he looks kinda' adorable."

Kenji snickered. "I see a good future in you, Akari-chan. Picking my son as your boyfriend will be the best choice you ever made. Looks like we're gonna be in-laws!"

"Eh?" Akari said with confusion. For a 12 year-old it wouldn't be a surprise if she doesn't understand love.

Mamoru huffed. "Too soon. Kenji. They're 12."

"Who knows? Maybe they'll fall in love at first sight!" Kenji indulged himself in his fantasies.

Akari tugged Mamoru's shirt. "What did Uncle Kenji meant by that? What fist fight? Am I gonna fight him? I'm good at fighting!"

Kenji slapped his forehead while Akira snickered. "First sight! Not fist fight! I'm not sending my child to some battle." He turned to Mamoru. "You need to instill this kind of information in her. Children nowadays mature pretty fast. They lost their cuteness so quick..."

"Pedophile," inserted Akira nonchalantly.

The car stopped at a traffic light. Akira waited for it to turn green. He finally got a chance to speak. "My Aka-chan ain't gonna fall in love with your Yuuma. He's the one going to be smitten with her."

"How'd you know?"

"I saw the future."

Kenji rolled his eyes. "God. How can you even tolerate him, Mamoru?"

"Just like how your wife tolerates you, Kenji," she mocked. Kenji pouted as Akira erupted into peals of laughter.

The light turned green. Akira returned to his driving. As the car crossed the road to the opposite, Mamoru felt weird. Her intuition shouted at her.

Stop!

She didn't know why until she noticed at the edge of her eye was a truck. It came from the right. At first it was a mere dot and it gotten bigger until Mamoru can confirm it was loaded truck twice the size of their car. The problem was the truck came in fast. Too fast. She could hear the screeching of tires burning against road. The truck didn't stop at the red light. It couldn't stop.

"STOP!" Mamoru screamed the words from her throat.

Akira had fast reflexes. The moment he heard his wife screaming, he stepped the brakes hard. The car stopped.

Mamoru was relieved. The truck will drive past them even if it cannot stop—

But the truck swerved into a curve. It crashed into the side of the car, where Kenji and Akari were the nearest. The impact shook the entire car. The truck didn't stop there. Momentum was too strong for it to stop after hitting a car. The truck pushed the car along with its remaining force. Windows shattered into pieces. A huge dent caved into the car.

By instinct, a millisecond before the truck hit, Mamoru covered herself over Akari. Her eyes focused on her precious daughter. She felt her bones cracked as something hit her hard in her spine. It was painful. But she couldn't move away. She wouldn't move away. The pain burnt and she screamed as it seared like hot iron on her skin.

The truck finally stopped and the car toppled onto its left. Sharp tiny objects pierced through her face. One of them was stuck in her eye. Warmth liquid oozed from her eye and she knew it was blood. She couldn't move her limbs. They were broken beyond repair. She couldn't feel anything at all, except the familiar warmth at her torso. Heavy breathing filled the air.

She opened her unharmed right eye. Akari nestled in her arms. She was still breathing. Mamoru felt Akari's heartbeat pulsed at her stomach while she can barely felt hers.

Unharmed. Thank god.

She didn't know what happened to Akira or Kenji. She didn't have the strength to turn around and see. She was afraid if she moved her sight from Akari, Akari will get hurt. Her forehead rested on Akari's as she gasped for air.

"Akari..." Mamoru whispered. Her voice came out weak.

Akari opened her eyes. "Mommy?" she muttered. A drop of blood splattered on her face and the little girl widened her eyes. "Mommy?!" her voice was raspy, more like a shout.

"It's okay... sweetie... I protected you. You're alright..." Mamoru cannot summon anymore energy to speak. She was tired. She wanted to sleep.

Yes, sleep. Sleep sounds nice. I want to sleep.

Her eyelids were heavy. They threatened cut Akari from her. But she forced them to open.

"Mommy?! Mommy don't sleep!" Akari's voice grew distant, as if she left Mamoru to a far place. They became mere whispers resonating in her ears.

"Mommy... mommy wants to... sleep now..."

"Mommy! Don't sleep! Don't leave me alone!" Akari's shouts were nothing but whispers to her.

She touched her daughter's cheek for one last time and her hand slid off lifelessly.

"Mommy!"

Mamoru felt that she had finally fulfilled her sole mission in this world seamlessly—to protect her daughter. Now she decided to sleep eternally. Her daughter was safe; that's all it mattered.

Goodbye, world.

And she closed her eyes.

*****

Karma

Karma has never attended a funeral before. His paternal grandparents passed away when he was an infant. His maternal ones were living in the countryside, embraced in nature. Often he would visit them because he loved the scenery there—green grass, tall trees, blooming flowers—natural things that this concrete jungle lacked.

Today, his parents brought him along to a church in town. There a funeral was held. Karma knew about funerals from books. They were solemn, serious, sad and a monotone colour of black and white. Karma thought of dying his hair black to accommodate the situation. His hair was a brilliant red, the colour of raging fire, like his personality.

Karma had passed by the church sometimes. He didn't go in because he found it unnecessary to do so. He only admired its grand exterior from afar. It had a red roof and a bell tower where the gold rustic bell would ring every hour.

When he and his parents arrived, the place was buzzing with people. But it wasn't like those busy streets in the city area where they would thrust each other aimlessly. Everyone here was silent. They shuffled to the opened doors of the church in an orderly fashion, glancing around with sad smiles, speaking in hushed voices. One of them was a man with large build, who stood by the door, unperturbed by the flow. He had greying hair but his complexion revealed that he was younger.

"Himura-san, you have our condolences." Karma's father, a tall man with golden eyes he inherited from, took the man's hand and gently shook it.

"I'm sorry for what happened," said Karma's mother, who had passionate red hair tied in a bun.

Karma glanced around. He was bored. Adults talked whatever they wanted and he had no interests in it. He was 12. He shouldn't stand by and listen to their boring conversations. Silently, he snooped off and wandered around the compound. There was a huge cherry blossom tree growing next to the church; its pink flowers blossomed beautifully, signifying spring, in contrast with the monotone colour of the funeral. The wind gently exhaled and the flower petals danced around him. They scattered on the ground, forming a circle with him in the centre. Karma loved the colour of the blossoms. Unlike his fiery red hair, they were a soothing pink, beautiful and gentle.

There was a bench under the tree. On it, sat a little girl. She wasn't amazed by the flowers around her. Instead, she stared at the ground with glassy eyes. Karma slowly approached her. She had long brown hair and probably his age.

"Hello," Karma spoke. The girl looked up. She had beautiful blue eyes, the colour of the sky, but they were sad and forlorn. She didn't reply him, only stared at him like he was some alien. Persistent to get her talk, Karma waved his hands before her eyes. "Hello? Are you there? Are you deaf or something? Can you speak?"

The girl continued to stare at him. "I'm not deaf," she replied. Her voice was flat, devoid of any emotions. "I can speak."

Karma raised his eyebrows at her. He sat beside her. "Are you alone here? I'm bored. Let's go somewhere to play."

The girl slowly shook her head.

"No worries. My parents are right there." He pointed to them near the entrance of the church, still speaking the man called Himura. "They won't find out. Where's yours?"

She lifted her arm lifelessly and pointed to the church.

"They are in the church?" Karma asked. "We're be back when they come out. Let's—"

"They are not coming out."

Karma was perplexed. Hold up. Are her parents...

"They are lying in there, letting people see their last faces as they mourn for their deaths. They are dead."

'Dead' was a heavy word weighed onto her tiny shoulders. Karma could felt how heavy it was. The air thickened around them and became suffocating.

Oh crap. I just stepped on a mine.

Her shoulders quaked. Tears brimmed in her eyes but they didn't pour out like he expected. Karma didn't like making girls cry. His father said only bad boys make girls cry. He wanted to be a good boy, who could bring smiles to any girl. But this girl sitting next to him, the fact that she was about to cry meant he wasn't doing a good job.

"Don't cry!" Karma couldn't handle crying girls either. Adults would probably chide him for making a girl cry. He needed to make her stop.

"I'm not going to cry. I've fed up with it," she said, but the tears overflow and streamed down her rosy cheeks.

Karma flustered. Do something! His conscience yelled.

He rose from his seat and quickly gathered the cherry blossoms on the ground. Both of his hands were full of it when he came back to her. He showed them to her. Girls liked flowers, he believed. "S-see! Cherry blossoms! Look at how pretty they are!"

The girl stared into his cupped hands filled with pink blossoms. But tears were still pouring.

"Don't cry!" He decided to get a basket and fill it with more blossoms. But as he took a step, he slipped and fell to the ground. The flowers in his hand flew in the air and landed on his face. He coughed. The pollen was getting into his nostrils.

The girl's eyes widened. She wiped her tears and chuckled. Her chuckling was melody to his ears. He was mesmerized. When he tried to stand, he lost balance because he was fixated on her and toppled to the ground once more. This time, his face connected with the dirt. It tasted awful.

The girl's laughter was like bell chimes. He finally got hold of his footing and stood while brushing the dirt from his clothes. Karma watched her as she laughed at his clumsy antics. He smiled.

"Don't cry anymore okay?" he pleaded. "You look cuter if you smile."

The wind blew around them. A blizzard of flower petals surrounded them.

The girl smiled. "Okay."

Karma stretched his hand outward. "My name is Akabane Karma. What's yours?"

"My name is Aka—"

"Karma!"

Karma stiffened. He turned around to his mother, who looked unpleased. "Mom..."

His mother pulled his ear. "Ouch!"

"How many times I told you not to run off like that?" she reprimanded.

"Sorry..."

"Come on, we have to go into the church." She spotted the girl siting on the bench. Smiling, she approached and squatted before her. "You must be Akira and Mamoru's daughter right? You look just like them."

Karma still hadn't got her name yet. But his father arrived, messing his perfectly combed red hair. "Karma, I saw it. You just made a girl cry. That's just mean."

"I did not..." he trailed off because he lacked of confidence. "I... I made her laugh!" He was proud of his accomplishment, but the crying would have given him demerits.

"Come on, let's go." His father dragged him along into the church. Karma couldn't fight back. He could only glance over his shoulder at the little girl by the bench. His mother was still talking to her.

When he came out awhile later, his vision went straight to the bench. But she was gone. The cherry blossoms were still flying in the air.

He remembered her name. Aka... the colour of his hair. Even though it wasn't her full name, he thought it was a beautiful name. He liked it.

Karma silently wished the best for her in her life. He wondered if he could see her again.

And when he does, he hoped to find the smile on her face.

*****

Here's an Interlude!!!

The video I posted is an opening from an anime which I believed suited the second part of the interlude because the anime is sakura-themed while the second part is sakura-themed as well XD Just a random thought.

The name of the song is Hikaru Nara by Goose House!!!

Anyway, thanks for voting, reading, commenting, loving, supporting my story :D

Karma: Spam all you want! Bask under the glory of my awesomeness!!!

XD