"O be careful little eyes what you see... O be careful little eyes what you see... There's a Father... up above, and he's looking down in love... O be careful little eyes what you see." I sang, softly as tears ran down my face.

"Singing won't get you anywhere, Kaori." Rize said as she sat by the chair I was in. Kaneki, Rize, and I were back in the white room again. "I... I just wanna go home. I wanna be with my Dad again. I just..." Tears began to drip onto the white floor as I felt guilty for making a stupid mistake of joining Aogiri.

"Kaori, do you remember the first time we met?" She asked. "The first time... we met?" I asked. "I remember how you pitiful you looked, begging for someone to save you. And after I turned you into a ghoul, you promised that we'd have each other's back. But let me ask you something: Where were you when I needed you?" Rize asked.

"I was..." I thought back to where I was. "In Anteiku. Helping Touka." I said. "You broke your promise, Kaori. You said you'd be there for me, and you weren't." Rize said. "No... It wasn't my fault. I... I didn't know where you were." I said.

"When you think about it thoroughly, you're the one who killed me. You failed to protect me." Rize said as she covered my eyes from behind.

"How do you expect me to forgive after you abandoned me like that? How can I still even like you for what you did to me? Who knows? You might even break that promise to Touka and the other ghouls at Anteiku. You promise that you would protect them all. But in the end, promises are just words that mean nonsense." Rize said.

She uncovered my eyes and I saw bodies in Anteiku that belonged to Touka, Hinami, Mr. Yoshimura, Uta, my Dad, and other ghouls. "No... No, that won't happen. It can't." I said, refusing to believe it.

"I think I'll let you dwell on that for a while. I'm gonna go talk to Kaneki." Rize said before disappearing. I hung my head as I thought about what she said. I made so many promises to everyone, telling them that I would protect them.

But how can I do that when I failed to protect Rize? It's all my fault... It's all my fault...

I sat there for a while until I heard a voice. "Kaori..." I lifted my head and spotted my father. "Dad..." I said in realization. "It's all your fault. If you had just been honest with me and told me why you did this, none of this would've happened. It's all your fault, Kaori." Dad said.

My eyes widened in shock. "You're a terrible daughter, Kaori. It's your fault why all this is happening." He said before Jason killed him with his kagune. "Nooo!!!" I screamed. "Dad! Dad!" I tried to break free from the chair I was restrained in.

"No... Please, no..." I whispered before hanging my head. "Please... I don't want this to happen. I don't want my Dad to die. Please... I don't wanna be like this. I want to be strong so I'll be able to protect everyone... Please... make me strong." I begged.

"Do you truly want this?"

I looked up and saw a girl with long white hair as her back was facing me. She sat on a pile of bodies. They looked familiar. I narrowed my eyes at the bodies to get a better look at them and I noticed that some of the bodies belonged to the guys that sexually harassed me.

But the other bodies I didn't recognize. "To become strong, sacrifices have to be made. Are willing to do that?" She asked. "Who are you?" I asked. "Hmph." She jumped off the bodies and landed in front of me. Her red eyes stared into my green ones.

"The bodies you were sitting on... Who are they?" I asked. "You should recognize them. They're your kill." She said. My eyes widened when she said that. "No... There's no way I killed them. I couldn't have." I denied.

"Oh, really? Then, let's take a trip down memory lane." She said. She turned around, standing beside me as I saw myself in Aogiri, sleeping in my room. I watched myself sit up in bed and leave the room.

She grabbed her mask off the desk as she left room, heading into the city. She walked into alley, spotting some guys watching a fight that was going on. The fight stopped as they noticed me in the alley with my mask over my face.

"Oi. Halloween's over, kid. Get lost." One of the guys said. My past self responded by activating her kagune. Everyone got freaked out as they started to back away from her. She darted towards the guys, attacking them and killing them left and right.

My eyes widened at what I was seeing. When the guys were dead, my past self took off her mask and began to eat the corpses. "Now, do you understand? You did all this in your sleep. The hunger that grew inside you took over your body, making you feed in  your sleep." The white haired girl said.

The image ended there and I was staring at a white wall. "Who... are you?" I asked. "...I'm you, Kaori Rikuto." The girl answered. I looked at her as she stared straight ahead. "Listen to me well, Kaori. Don't listen to a word Rize says." She said.

"What? But why?" I asked. "Rize is just using you. The real person she wants is Kaneki." She explained. "No, you're lying. Rize would never use me." I said.

"Do you honestly believe she cared about you this whole time? From the beginning? She was just looking for some entertainment. The moment she found you in that alley, you were her target." The girl explained.

I shook my head in disbelief. "It can't be true... It can't be true." I said, trying to convince myself. "See for yourself," She took us to where Kaneki and Rize were. She hugged and cared for him like she really liked him... Like what she used to do with me.

"Her real treasure was Kaneki Ken the whole time. Always had. Rize never cared about you. She only used you so she could get closer to Kaneki. Like I said; You were just her puppet for entertainment." My other self said.

"No..." I whispered. I lowered my head as tears escaped my eyes. Everything Rize told me was a lie. She was only using me, from the beginning. Why, Rize? Why would you do this to me? I loved you. I looked up to you... And you just used me and threw me away like trash. 

"Rize can't control you anymore, Kaori. You are no longer her little puppet. Now, break free." My other self commanded. "I can't... I'm stuck to this chair." I said. "Wrong. You're just holding back. You have the power to break free. You've always had. Now, use it."

"But Rize..."

"Forget about her,"

My other self held out her hand to me. "Take my hand, and break free. Take control, Kaori." She said. "I can't... I can't..." I said, my head hung low.

"Don't you want to protect them? Touka. Hinami. Mr. Yoshimura. Everyone at Anteiku. You made a promise that you'd protect them all. But that won't happen unless you accept the ghoul inside you." She said.

I lifted my head as my other self stood a few feet away from me. She once again held out her hand as she stared at me. "Take my hand, Kaori. Live and protect the ones you care about. Accept this fate." She said.

I fought back my tears and broke free from the chair, running towards my other self. When I grabbed her hand, she gently pulled me towards her, making me wrap my arms around her waist. "From now on, it is I who will look after you. I will by your side every step of the way. Forever and always." She said, gently as her hand rested on the back of my head.

For the first time, since I joined Aogiri, I felt relaxed as a comforting warmth surrounded my body. "Please... stay with me... Never leave my side." I said, feeling tired. "Wouldn't dream of it." My other self said, softly.