misogynistic - naoya

chapter 20

naoya zen'in

"Nika, it's alright, I'll prepare something to eat today, you'll eat with us, right?" The blonde maid, standing in front of Kayo, widening her eyes, she spoke, "If you allow me to." It was strange to change from the Zen'in household to theirs, well, whatever the name of their family was, because Kayo chose to keep her own last name and took Zen'in only on paper. "Of course." "Thank you, Ieiri-sama." She sighed, her life was based on caring for her sister, making someone prepare food and clean her house was just unusual. "Kayo is completely fine." "Thank you, Kayo-san."

Nika looked around, not knowing what to do, because she would've normally had orders or errands to run. "Nika, you can casually just watch something or go out. I'll call you before the meal is done." "Really?" "Sure." "Thank you." She smiled and took her clothes to go for a walk.

"Well done." "What is it?" "Isn't she a maid? Isn't she supposed to prepare dinner?" Turning her head from her husband, she sighed. "You don't get it, do you? She's barely twenty, let her live her life." "Aren't we paying her for working here?" "If you don't like it, I'll pay her myself." He rolled his eyes at her comment. "As if." Walking out of the kitchen, Naoya didn't see the wide grin on her face.

It was around six, when all of them had finished their meals. Nika stood up to clean the table and after she was done, she was sent home by Kayo, giving her time for herself at night. The brunette sat on the ground in the living room, staring at the bright screen Naoya had turned on in the darkness. Turning the volume down, Kayo turned to him.

"What have you done these past years?" She laid her head on her knees, which she was holding in her arms. Naoya stood up and sat down on the ground either, having their eyes on the same level. "I wanted to forget and focused on other things." "Forget?" "I remember that day too well. I know what I told you." He stopped, taking a breath before talking again. "You didn't come back after the first year. I started to slowly believe that you'd never come back, although you had promised. You know, Toji had promised me something too."

Those words caught her attention, making her question, "What did he promise you?"

"When I was younger, they would've always compare me to Satoru. He had his six eyes technique, he was nearly god. No one was able to stop him. Toji however was different, always hated by my family, which I thought was normal until he left. Before he had left our clan, he promised me to at least be by my side, even though he hated the rest of the family. I of course was way younger than him, just like you, believing that he meant it, I respected and looked up to him. Finding out years later that those words were just meaningless, I understood why my family was like that. People like us and people like him, we weren't capable of co-existing. He was too powerful to be a normal human being. He wasn't a normal civilian. Neither a sorcerer. Those people turn to the evil."

"You were, betrayed?" Looking somewhere else, Naoya slightly nodded. "You know, he tried to do the same to me, huh." She laughed a little.

"But I was stubborn and didn't want to let go. I could resist his harsh words, they meant nothing for me because I knew that he never meant them. Hopefully. Oh, how he played us and now he's gone, leaving all of us behind, enjoying his silence. I bet he's laughing now?" She smiled. "Making yourself hate the ones that betrayed you, just like I did, I left you either Naoya, you have a good right to hate me. I think trying to forget is the best way to cope with loss. But you have to know this about Toji.... he gave up his son. And I am more sure about this than anything, that Megumi meant a lot to him. He knew he couldn't be a good father, that's why he left him behind. He probably knew that he couldn't be a good example or cousin, that's why he left you."

Silence.

"What have you been doing?" This question wasn't sudden but it still was unexpected. She thought twice before answering his question. "I was... alone." "Really?"

"Oh, you won't believe it. I've traveled just to go on a killing spree of curses. The first year, I tried to let out my anger. I don't even know what I was angry about." Laughing at herself, she continued. "And I trained. That was what he wanted me to do and it took me ten years to gain confidence and patience to do that, wow, what kind of failure am I?"

"Definitely a good looking one." Naoya whispered to himself. "Hm?" Kayo didn't hear him, after all, the television was still on and he just whispered. "I said, definitely a failure." "Why, thanks." She was looking at him, thinking about a reason against telling him about her domain with Toji. She couldn't find any except the one, that she didn't want to.

"You know, you really have problems with that personality of yours, why does it change all the time?" "Do you know how hard it is to be a Zen'in? Even though you may not want to, you have to act a certain way. Both, Toji and Maki are different than me. They have reasons to leave the clan, but I? A person whose life has been treated well?" He looked at her, shrugging his shoulders.

For a while, they only looked at each other, not saying anything. Seeing Kayo open her mouth a few times, though she refused to say anything, Naoya questioned it, catching her off guard. "I think- I just- You know- Actually-" She didn't know how to explain it. This was the first time for him to see her like that. "Naoya, there is something I need to show you." Standing up, leaving the man confused, she put her hands together.

She expanded her domain, turning the ground into a deep ocean. "What is this about?" "Just watch." She took out her needle and poked herself, making her hand bleed a little. Now the white-haired was also standing, looking at her. Concentrating. Toji slowly appeared. He was there. Physically. Not as a ghost or anything. His characteristics were the same, his looks were the same, but he still was dead.

Naoya backed off, moving a few steps behind, he fell onto the couch. "Toji." "Am I scaring you, cousin?" He turned his head to Kayo. "How are you doing this? Is he alive?" Before she could start talking, Toji ranted about some stuff, earning a smack on his head. "Could you like, stop? After all I am older than you." "And I am more mature, Toji." She turned to her husband, who got used to the black-haired staying there.

"I am manipulating my mind into thinking he is real and physically touchable." "So disgusting." Toji added. She just rolled her eyes and continued, "And inside my domain, not only I, also you and everyone on the water can see him."

Naoya sat down on the water, closing his eyes. A tear was flowing down his cheek. "You left us Toji." He started to smile. "You damned killer, only thinking about yourself."