I stare at the ceiling of my room. The morning sun shines through my window and reflects off of my mirror and onto the ceiling, the light dancing. I smile softly and listen to the chirping of the birds and the crashing of the waves. The sky is clear, not a cloud in the sky. It sounds like the perfect day except for one imperfect detail.
"Tomi," my mother shouts from the kitchen, "get your ass down here, now!"
Rolling my eyes, I rise from my bed and tug my mask up to cover much of my face. My hand freezes once it touches the soft cloth as I think of the father I never knew and probably never will. My other hand clenches as I think about that one, unknown face. The face of the man who never appeared in my life.
"Tomi get down here before I drag you down myself, God damnit!" her voice is shrill.
My arm drops to my side as I sigh. I quickly walk to the kitchen to find my mother making herself breakfast. She's holding the whisk so tightly that her knuckles are white and I find myself wondering what got her under her skin this time. My question is answered as she points a bony finger at the mass of dishes stacked in the sink from her cooking.
She says, "I told you to do those yesterday, you good for nothing twerp."
I smile slightly as I reply, "I know, but if you've forgotten, I'm still in the academy. I have school work and training to do. The Graduation Exam is in a week and I don't know what they're going to do for it. I have to be in top shape, you know."
I quickly step to the side as she throws the bowl and whisk at me. The contents splatter on the wall and ground. Knowing what's coming next, I pick up the bowl and whisk and walk them over to the sink. I neatly set them on top of the stack of dishes and turn to see my mother's angry face.
"Stop acting smart! Dishes first, school later," she says.
I just nod, dismissing the thought to beat her to a bloody pulp quickly. Turning around, I turn on the water and grab the cloth hanging on the faucet. I squirt some soap into it and start washing the dishes.
After a couple of minutes my mother says, "About fucking time you be obidient. I brought you into this world and I can take you out of it, Bitch. After you finish cleaning up that mess you can go to the market and get the groceries. The list is on the fridge."
I scrub harder, trying to control my anger in a less violent way than dropping her to the floor. I hear her leave and I pick up the speed. In five minutes the dishes are done. I grab the list off of the fridge and leave the house. I see a familiar figure standing in the road. A small boy with dark brown hair and green overalls.
I wave at him as I shout, "Hey, Inari!"
He looks at me and smiles. His cheeks are tear stained, telling me he was just crying. It could only be about one person. Kaiza. Kaiza was a fisherman who came to the land of waves to, well, fish. He rescued Inari when he almost drowned. Kaiza taught Inari the meaning to courage. Kaiza always said to protect what he loved with both arms. Inari basically lived by that until...until Kaiza was killed by Gato, the man terrorizing this island.
"Hey, Tomi! My mom wants you to babysit me tonight. She said to come over when you have time." Inari's voice brings me out of my thoughts.
"What? Oh, yeah sure. I'll come by after I get the groceries. See you then, okay?" I say with a smile.
He nods and runs back to his house. I've been babysitting Inari since he was little and he's been one of my best friends since then.
I walk down to the market. It's busy and I have to brush past a lot of people. Many of them know me. They know me as the unwanted child whose mother works her to the bone. They're right, of course, but if my father knew me, he would surely care, wouldn't he?
I stop at the fruit stand and read off my list. I also add lemons, seeing as they're my favorite fruit. Some people think they're sour, but not me.
I look up at the sky and notice the giant crane that Inari's grandfather, Tazuna is using to build the bridge that's going to save this town. Gato can't help it if other merchants come into town on that bridge. We can't help it that he took over this town either, so we might have a standoff once it's finished. He could have guards stationed on the bridge to make sure that no one can get in. We won't know until it happens.
I'm brought out of my thoughts by the fruit stand lady. She's pushing a brown paper bag towards me. I smile at her and nod my thanks before I grab the bag and head home. It's starting to get late and if I'm not home when my mother gets home, she'll probably blow a lung. As much as I'd like that, I don't want to be the cause of it.
When I open the door to my home, I'm shocked at what I see. The kitchen table is smashed, the walls look like they have been clawed to death by an angry tiger, and my mother is tied up and gagged in a corner while two huge men loom over her. I clench my fist angrily, wondering what kind of trouble she got herself into this time. When she sees me, her eyes widen and she starts pointing and screaming. One of the men turn around and grins. He has a sword at his hip and he's shirtless. He has a blue tatoo covering most of his left arm and shoulder. He has an eyepatch and two scars, one on his forehead and one on his mouth. Something tells me he's trouble.
"Zori," he says, "Looks like the daughter of this tramp came home. Should I cut her up a little?"
The other man turns around. Zori, as his partner said, has gray hair covered by a black hat. He has a purple teardrop tatoo under each eye. He's wearing a purple jacket. He seems less scary than the other one, but I have a feeling he means business.
He smirks at me and says, "No. She had nothing to do with this. Gato said to only bring in the woman, not the girl."
"Gato? What's he going to do to her?" I ask quietly.
"Question her. There's said to be an academy kid living in this village that could be a real threat to Gato's work," Zori says.
I blink and nod slowly. Shock is evident on my features. I don't notice I've dropped the bag of fruit until it hits the floor. Apples roll out of it and go in all directions. The shirtless man grabs my mother and throws her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"I'd suggest you move out of the way, brat," he commands.
I do as he says and he walks past me and out the door. Zori follows him and smirks at me again. He reaches out and touches a strand of my silver hair before going out the door and closing it behind him. I shiver after they leave. The house seems void of life. I bite my lip and feel a tear slip down my cheek. I wipe my eyes and go to my room. Grabbing my bag, I put my pjs and some clothes in it.
I walk over to Inari's and knock on the door. Tsunami answeres the door with a smile.
"Tazuna's not back yet?" I ask.
She shakes her head and says, "He'll be back in a couple more days. I was hoping you'd show up because I have to go out of town tonight."
I just nod and walk into the house. Inari is nowhere to be found, but I know he's probably around somewhere.
"I don't know how I can repay you," Tsunami says quickly.
Like most of the villagers, Tsunami's family has little to no money.
I smile at her and say, "Just let me stay here until I graduate."
Concern crosses her features. Tsunami is like another mom to me. She never gets angry with me and she's an amazing cook. I just wish I was her daughter instead of my mother's. Inari runs down the stairs and collides with my legs. He wraps his arms around me and hugs me.
"Tomi! I knew you'd come. I knew it!"
I seem to be one of the few people who can make him smile anymore. He hates it when I talk about graduating because he doesn't think this land has any heroes that can stop Gato's reign. I'm going to prove him wrong though because when I graduate, I'll stop Gato, no matter the cost.
I look down at Inari and ruffle his hair. I'll stop Gato and that's a promise.
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Chapter notes: I've brought back Taking Control, but this time, it's better! I had to make a new account because my other one wouldn't let me back in...for some apparent reason. So, here's the first chapter! I hope you like it! Read and review!
Chapter end notes: I hope you liked it. I'm going to try to update again sometime this week, so keep a lookout!