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Chapter Twenty-Four: Daisuke:

August 1st, 1988.

Daisuke sat at the desk that Kato let him use in his room. He had just hit stop on the tape recorder after recording another journal entry. The twenty-three-year-old sat lost in his thoughts. He held a small silver charm bracelet in his hands./ It had been so long/, he thought.

Daisuke came back to earth when he heard the door slide open. He looked up and saw little Anna in the doorway. She stared at him in silent wonder as her father stared at her likewise.

May 23rd, 2009.

While the Shinigami and demons were all talking about the case at hand, Anna played another tape of her father’s.

Tape Entry #211:

August 1st, 1988. My name is Kimoto Daisuke. I am twenty-three years old and a single father. Summer is here and that means Anna-chan’s out of school now. Uh-oh, guess I’ll have to keep that little bit busy for the whole break.

-He laughs-

This will be another good summer. I hadn’t had this much fun since the 70’s. Great times they were! Now…

-He pauses-

All I have is the memories. I see them in my Anna-chan. Seeing her little face reminds me that life can be okay at times. Anna-chan… My little soldier… She’s become my motivation to survive my bloodline. My little solder…

End of Tape Entry #211

Anna sat quiet in the dark. His little soldier; that’s what Daisuke called her, that’s how he saw her. Anna asked him why he called her that the day before he died. Daisuke gave her a kind, little smile.

“Because you keep me sane,” he reasoned, “You manage to keep me together when everything looks bleak. When I see your face, I slowly raise out of my black hole of self-pity. That’s was makes you my little soldier.”

Anna lied back onto her futon. She held her left wrist in her vision. A silver charm bracelet hung around it loosely. The Kanji for long life was in tiny blocks all around and tiny chains held them together. Anna narrowed her eyes on the bracelet on her slim wrist.

/Papa…/, she thought as she drifted back to that summer night in 1988.

-Flashback-

Little Anna stood in the doorway of Daisuke’s room staring as her papa stared back at her.

“Papa,” the little girl said, “What are you doing?” Daisuke gave her a little smile as he completely turned around to her.

“Anna-chan, could you do something for me?” he asked. The little girl tilted her head at him.

“What is it?” she asked. Her father sat there bravely. Could he do this with her? Seemed like a huge request for such a small child, but yet Anna seemed so strong. She could take this; he knew that she could. Daisuke drew in a deep breath.

“Can you be daddy’s little soldier?” he asked. Little Anna blinked at him.

“What do you mean?” she asked. Daisuke opened the desk drawer behind him and reached inside.

“I need you to take care of something for me,” he said. Little Anna looked on at her dad.

“What is it?” she asked.

“Come here and hold out your left wrist,” Daisuke told her calmly. Anna smiled at him cheerfully.

“Okay,” she said. Then the girl held her left arm forward and walked over to her father. Daisuke drew out the silver bracelet from the drawer. When his daughter got close enough, he clasped it around her tiny wrist and fit it to a smaller size. Anna watched him as he do so. Daisuke sat back smiling.

“Now, Anna-chan,” he said, “The bracelet belonged to someone very to dear to me. Can I trust you to be my little soldier and take good care of it for me?” Anna stared on surprised at first. Her dad just gave her a valuable treasure and wanted her to take care of it? Anna nodded at him with a smile.

“Yes Papa!” she chirped, “I’ll be your little soldier!”

“Very good, Anna-chan!” he said relived. He lightly patted his daughter on the head. Anna smiled at him upbeat as she began her duty as papa’s little soldier from that point onwards.

-Present Day-

Anna slowly shut her eyes as she stared at her bracelet still.

His little soldier…/, she thought tired, /Papa…

Anna would have gone to sleep if she hadn’t heard the doorbell ring. The woman quickly woke back up and sat up. Tsuzuki already checked on her for the night. Rihoko had a night class tonight. Yoko-chan and Seita were in their rooms for the night. Maybe the killer?

Anna went into the kitchen and got the broom. She couldn’t be too careful after she and Daisuke got killed. Once armed, Anna slowly made her way to the front door. She waited and listened for any moments. At first, the woman heard nothing, but she still listened closer. Suddenly, she heard a shuffle outside. Anna prepared to attack and opened the door.

She looked around and saw nothing. Anna looked puzzled and kept up her guard all at once. The killer could have found another way to break into the manor.

/Where did that bastard go?/, she thought. Anna clutched the boom handle tightly.

Suddenly, she felt a tight pressure on her neck in the dark. Anna dropped the broom and tried to fight off her attacker in vain. The last thing she could remember was sinking into a colder darkness.