Just a Doll

Disclaimer: I do not own Chrno Crusade, or any of the characters from it, and so on…I do however, own this story, so…I guess it’ll have to do for now…-sigh-

As I said before, I’ll be sure to keep this chapter a quite a bit longer than the last, so I hope it comes out good. Jeez…I’m gonna have to majorly change Fiore’s personality after she’s taken by Aion. @_@. Just as a warning, this chapter is boring. Yes, very. Nothing happens in it, and I’m sure nothing will happen until after she is taken away by the sinners. u_u;
Oh, and also, I had someone mention that a few things in the last “chapter” seemed to come from the anime version of Chrno Crusade. Well, I never base any writings I do on the anime alone (considering that…I think the manga story is better….), but rather do small mixes of the anime and manga if it isn’t a big part of the story development. And I will be having to take bits and pieces mentioned in the show and comic in order not to skip over any vital parts. So, with that said, Enjoy! ^^

The Sinner~

Just a Doll

Chapter 1: Devil Without Horns
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A small gust of wind whirled past her, slicing through the silence of the barren land in which she stood, causing a frown to pass over her features. Her shadowed eyes crept open to peer at the nothingness before her.

“Satella?”

No answer.

“Mother, father, Steiner? Where are you all?” A hint of worry could be heard from her shaky voice as she took a cautious step forward, trying to adjust her eyes to the blackness. As far as she could remember, she hadn’t left home…so where was she now?

Taking another few steps, she gasped quietly when her foot caught on something, nearly making her tumble forward. Bending down with a hand outstretched she held her breath when her fingers came into contact with something. Slim...wet...cold…what was it? She tugged the thing up to meet it’s gaze, suddenly letting a loud, shocked scream be torn from her lips and she jerked away, falling to her knees in fear.

“Mother..?” She stared at the bloody, lifeless form of her guardian that was now in mere shreds of what used to be human.

“Please…Please…someone…” The young teen did her best to wipe the blood onto the lower bit of her dress, rather than keep the foul substance staining her hand. “Tell me what’s happening! Please…”

“Florette Harvenheit. That’s your name, isn’t it?”

Her gaze lifted to meet with the voice, pushing the tears aside for the time being.

“Yes, I am Florette Harvenheit. Who are you? Tell me, are you the one who has done this?” Florette pulled herself upwards and into a defensive stance, gripping a jewel she had hidden away tightly, just in case.

“You say that as if I’m so heartless…I have my reasons, just as every event that occurs has its purpose. It’s not like I killed them all…”

Swinging around on her heal, sure enough, Florette lay eyes on her sobbing sister just a few yards away, appearing as though she were trying to force life into their parents.
“Satella!” Anger overwhelming her now, Florette pulled her jewel forth and fully faced the intruder, readying herself for her attack.

“Laden!”

********

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

“Miss Florette, miss Satella, it is almost noon, are you two awake?” Steiner’s muffled voice came from the opposite side of the door. The old man knocked again, awaiting an answer from one of the two.

Florette sat up quickly, almost fall over from the suddenness. “Ah, yes Steiner, we’re awake!” What an awful dream… “Satella, it’s time to wake up.” She shook the younger child’s shoulder a few times, a smiling crossing her face when she heard a hushed whimper. “Yes, we’ve slept in, you need to wake up.”

“Oh, okay…” The mess of scarlet hair crawled forth from the blankets, yawning loudly before staring sleepily at the elder sibling.

“Good girl. Now, c’mon, out of bed.”

Forcing her own self from the warmth, Florette scurried over to the fancy dresser set in the corner of the enormous room, searching for clean clothing before changing into it. She turned back, laughing quietly at the sight of the half awake little girl who looked as though she would pass out any second.

Taking the younger hand with her own, she tugged her sister into the hallway and back to the opposite room. “Go get changed, then I’ll help you brush your hair. Don’t take too long, or mother might get irate.” The small girl nodded and hurriedly searched for something to put on.

Florette rubbed her temple sorely, frowning at the nightmare she was awaken from. It all felt more real than any other dream she could remember having, and as hard as she tried to forget it, she couldn’t.

“Miss Florette, are you feeling alright?” Steiner interrupted her thoughts, leaving a stunned look on her face before shaking her head with a smile.

“Oh, yes, I’m alright. Thank you, I was just thinking about something-ah, Satella, there you are.”

The red head emerged from her room, tugging uncomfortably at her new dress, but grinned widely up at the teenager.

“Uh-huh. Like my new dress? Steiner bought it for me yesterday!” She beamed, turning every direction, admiring the way her outfit flowed.

“What? Steiner, out of your own pay? You didn’t have to…”

“Quite alright, I wanted to, really. Besides, it seems to have made miss Satella very pleased.” The older man smiled and bowed politely.

Florette patted the younger girl on the head and ushered her towards the bathing room, calling back to the butler a final time. “Thank you very much, Steiner. Can you please tell mother and father that we’ll be down in just a few moments?” She ran a hand through her own hair before taking the hairbrush from the counter near the sink and gently began to brush Satella’s untidy hair.

“Big sister, will you show me that trick? The one that mother was talking about?”

“Satella, please, keep your head straight.”

“Sorry…but will you? I still have yet to see it…” A hint of hopefulness rang in her voice, making it difficult to refuse her wish.

A soft sigh left Florette’s lips as she started to comb her own hair into perfection. “Alright, but you have to promise not to tell anyone. Alright?”

“But how come? I thought you were proud of it…” Satella’s head tilted to the side out of confusion towards the other female. Everyone else had been happy to see it, anyways…So she didn’t quite understand her sister’s meaning.

“Promise me, or you won’t see it.” Her deep eyes gazed blankly into the mirror as she brushed the shady tresses of brown.
“Okay...”

“Very well then. I’ll show you after we eat lunch, okay? Then we can go and play in the garden as well. Does that sound like fun?” She set the brush back down and offered a friendly hand again.

Satella’s face lit up more with each spoken word, gripping the hand readily. “Yup!”

Florette nodded simply then made her way for the stairs to join the rest of the family for lunch. It wasn’t as though she were ashamed in her powers…no…in truth, she didn’t want anyone to see her use them because she was afraid of her little sister being shunned more because she wasn’t able to do the same. That was the real reason behind it…She knew it was wrong to cherish one person more than another, just based on their abilities. Why couldn’t anyone else see it that way?

They turned the corner, taking their seats at the table and waiting for the others to arrive. A few minutes passed before Steiner came in with a few trays of food for the girls.

“Excuse me,” the elder sibling started, eying the room once more. “But where are mother and father?”

“Ah, yes, my apologies for not saying so earlier. Your father had business to attend to elsewhere, and your mother is in the front room, entertaining some guests that just arrived this morning. She asked that you two not call for her until the visitors are away.”

‘Of course.’ Florette thought. ‘You wouldn’t want your friends to be disappointed by your children.’

“I see.” She began, taking a small bite of food, chewing it, then swallowing and continued. “Satella and I are going to be in the back yard after we finish our meal. Can you please relay that message to her when you have the time?”

“Right away, m’lady.” And he was gone once more.

Large observing eyes watched their older sister as the owner nibbled on her own food, occasionally moving to take a drink of water.

A long while passed in silence as the two finished their meal, until finally both set down their silverware and gazed up at one another with grins. Suddenly, as if reading the opposite’s mind, they pushed away from the table and rushed outside, one right after the other.

That time…

Giggles and laughter filled the air thick with love as the two adolescents ran through the vibrant grassy area out back, the older chasing the younger with good fun.

Yes, it was that time…

Florette soon caught up to Satella, tugging her to the ground and began to mercilessly tickle the poor child into tears.

That she could remember feeling true happiness.

“Sister, sister please!” Satella squirmed under her sibling’s torture, trying her best to roll away, but to no avail.

Florette laughed at the younger one’s pitiful effort of escape, and eventually she leaned back, brushing some stray grass from the bottom of her dress. “Alright, alright, I guess I’ll be nice.” She grinned playfully before crawling over to sit under the large tree that towered over their yard, motioning for Satella to join her.

The little girl eagerly followed, sitting herself in the spot right next to her sister.
“So. Do you still want to see my trick, little one?” Reaching into her pocket, Florette pulled out her jewel and held it in her right hand, waiting for an answer.

“Yes! Very much! I mean…please…Show me!”

“Okay, calm down, Satella. The gem isn’t going to run away.” She laughed at the enthusiastic child beside her and waited for her to sit back before concentrating on the stone in front of her. She held it out, closing her eyes a moment before speaking.

“Laden.” She said calmly before opening her eyes again.

A small gasp of wonder left from her sister’s mouth, causing her to smile again. In her right hand, the jewel glowed a vibrant aqua. Suddenly, it started to shift, to grow in length, stretching out a little past a yard in length.

“Oh, sister, that’s amazing!” A wide grin spread over the small girl’s face, seeming to lighten the entire sky with awe.

Laughing gently, Florette shook her head at the statement. She felt it change shape again, this time, back into the tiny greenish stone, tucking it safely away inside her pocket where it belonged. “Well, it’s still not complete yet. I have much work to do if I want to get stronger.”

“But you already are, Florette!”

“Satella. Remember, you should never settle for a less than what you know you are capable of. If you give up too early, then you will get nowhere, understand?”

“Uh-huh. So…I’ll do my best as well!”

“Yes. If you think like that, then you will go very far in life. Never ever forget that.” Satella nodded quickly before curling up in the thick grass and leaning her head on Florette’s lap with a sleepy yawn.

“Okay…I won’t…” She mumbled quietly as she slowly drifted off into her dreamy state.

Sighing smoothly, Florette watched the young girl for a while, noting how peaceful she appeared. She felt her own eyes begin to get heavy, though she did what she could to keep them from drooping shut. In the distance she could hear the laughter coming from her mother’s little get together, and shook her head before stroking a hand over Satella’s forehead lovingly. The air seemed to turn colder with every little breeze, until she heard the approaching footprints, causing her to lift her gaze.

There was a man standing mere feet from her. A tall, handsome man cloaked in white. His hair, too, was white, almost completely covered by a bandage that wrapped about his head, just above his pointed ears. There was a smile on his face that reached all the way up to his violet eyes.

He took a moment to stare at the two girls before he spoke.

“That was an amazing trick you did with the gem.” There was a hint of amusement in his voice as he stepped a little closer, smile widening.

Florette felt panic grow up inside of her. She had been too enthralled with trying to entertain the smaller child, that she hadn’t even realized anyone had been watching them. That wasn’t good…

“Oh! Y-you were watching?!” Her eyes held a pleading stare. “Please, don’t tell anyone…They would treat me like a witch…”

“Really? But it’s such a wonderful power…And power should be used, don’t you think?”
She eyed the man for a while, as if trying to make sure he was serious or not, before figuring it would be better to simply change the subject entirely.

“Did you come from America to pay a visit to mother?”

“Yes.” The man started without looking away, barely blinking at all. “I’ve never met her…but I guess you could say I’m a distant relative.”

There was something about him…

“I see…well, mother is inside with her other guests. Would you like me to tell her you’re here?”

“No, it can wait. I find it nicer out here for the time being. So tell me…what’s your name?”

Why did his voice seem so familiar? She was certain she’d never met the guy before.

“I’m Florette. This is my younger sister Satella. What is your name?” Well, he seemed friendly enough…did she even have anything to worry about?

“Well hello miss Florette.” He reached out a hand in friendly gesture. “My name is Aion. It’s such a pleasure to meet you.”

The teen wasn’t quite sure what to say, so she only nodded, ignoring the hand, suddenly feeling rather fidgety. She had never done well around strangers, and this man…was just plain strange. Her eyes shifted to stare back down at her sister, then to the mansion, then back to Aion, waiting for him to say something again. As before, she found him staring at them with interest.

“Have you been able to do that for very long?”

His question seemed to startle her at first, frowning some. Wha…oh, that’s right…the jewels… “Oh, well, only a few years I guess. Mother taught me when I was very young. I’m still nowhere near as good as she is though.”

“Practice makes perfect, right?” Aion grinned. “Wonderful.”

Florette nodded some, looking back down as Satella began to stir, whimpering softly with lost sleep. One eye opened, then two, and she pushed herself up and off of the other’s lap while rubbing her eyes and looking around in confusion.

“Who were you talking to Florette?”

“Him~” She paused. He was gone. As quickly as he had appeared, he had vanished…Odd. “Oh…uh…no one…Just to myself. It’s starting to get chilly out here. Let’s go back inside, Satella.” Standing with a stretch, she waited for Satella to do the same before they made their way for the house.

~*~~~x~~~*~

The sound of multiple vehicles driving off sounded from out front as the herds of people finally began leaving the house, allowing silence to fill the area again. Removing her shoes and placing them by the back door, the dark haired girl brushed herself off a bit.
The doors to the next room opened, revealing their mother looking a bit flustered. She was busy trying to fit some of her loose hair back into her bun that was placed neatly at the back of her head.

“There you two are. Hurry and get upstairs. Your father will be home soon, and I don’t want him to be in a bad mood about any-Satella!”

Wincing, the younger girl stood upright, fear encasing her features at the harshness of her mother’s voice.

“What is that? Look. Look! You’ve tracked in mud again! You’re so hopeless!” With each word, the voice seemed to grow louder until she was practically shouting at the nine year old. “Steiner!”

Like a dog on call, the old man peeked his head into the room, observing the small footprints of dirt staining the carpet. “Ma’am?”

“Could you clean this up? This is all her fault, again. I swear, sometimes I wish you were never born, Satella…” Their female guardian shook her head in disgust, not even bothering to look the child in the face.

Satella lowered her gaze to the floor, attempting to fight back tears the threatened to poor from her eyes. Her shoulders shook lightly in the effort, and she removed her shoes , never once trying to make eye contact.

“Florette. Could you please take your sister upstairs to get changed? I’ll tell you when supper is ready.”

Florette inwardly glared at her mother, but said nothing. She took the smaller hand in her own and lead the child upstairs, waiting until they were out of view before kneeling down in front of her and using the end of her dress to wipe her face. “There, there. She doesn’t mean a word of it.” Yes she does… “She’s just had a difficult day, I’m sure.”

Yeah right…It was impossible to believe a single word that came from her lips. It astounded her how a parent could possibly hate their own child that much…without reason. She knew that was the case, from the conversation that was overheard between her parents later that night. She’d snuck from her bed, wishing to confront her mother about what was earlier said, only to hear something she’d hoped she’d never have to.
She leaned an ear against the cool wood of the door while she listened to the conversation.

“Honestly.” The woman opposite side the door began. “I can’t handle this any longer. I really don’t think I can.”

“Well, what do you expect me to do about it?” She heard her father reply coldly, sounding rather bored.

“I don’t know. Anything! I’m so sick of that girl! Everything about her irritates me to no end! She can’t do a single thing right. She’ll never make anything of herself, and I can’t have that holding me down.”

Florette glared at the door in disgust at the adults. Truly, they were more heartless than she’d first thought.

“Calm down. I’ll call my sister first thing in the morning. We already talked about it, and she said there could be a possibility that Satella go live with her for a while.”

No…

“Thank goodness for that. That’s just what we need is some time apart.”
From the crack underneath the door, she could see the lights dim, signaling the end of the conversation, and Florette leaned back, shaking her head in frustration, wanting nothing more than to barge in there and yell at them…but she couldn’t. Of course not. It wasn’t ‘proper’. Pssht…

So she tried to push the hateful thoughts from her mind, and instead turned in the direction of her sister’s room. Tears stung her eyes, though none fully left them, and she found herself staring intently at the little bundle of blankets curled up in the center of the bed once she entered the room. Simply watching before approaching. Florette crawled up next to Satella, stroking the soft tresses of red before wrapping a secure arm around the other’s shoulder and closing her eyes. She didn’t care anymore. It wasn’t right. She would do whatever it took to pull her family together…to knock some sense into her parents, and to bring a real smile to her sister’s face. With that thought in mind, she drifted off to a silent, dreamy slumber.

~*~~~x~~~*~

Fire.

Smoke.

Screaming, crying…

Frowning, the adolescent found it harder and harder to breath as her lungs inhaled the black smoke that danced about the room. Eyes snapping open, she practically jumped from the bed, squinting to see through the flames.

The mansion and everything in it…was on fire.

She turned to get Satella, only to find that the room was empty besides herself, and she ran. Her legs carried her out the door and down the hall of flames, calling out for anyone to answer, but all she heard was silence. Her parent’s rooms were empty, and Steiner and Satella were nowhere to be found.

Panic filled her heart, pushing her out into the open air as she coughed harshly, trying to find clean air to inhale.

Florette pulled herself up, covering her mouth and nose with her sleeve. Her gaze shifted around, trying to find some form of life within the sea of fire, until she noticed a figure. A tall, much taller form than herself. Large thin bat-like wings protruded from it’s shoulder blades, and long pointed ears could be seen just through the smog.

A demon!

“You, devil, why have you done this? Tell me, where is my family?!” Her right hand gripped the jewel she carried tightly, awaiting the creatures answer.

The thing turned to face her, shoving aside the bloody corpse of what used to be her father. She gasped, shocked when she recognized the face.

It was him. The same man from earlier…She should have known!

“How dare you, monster! I won’t let you get away with this!” She pulled the jewel out in front of her , never taking her eyes off of the man that stood before her.

“Laden!”

Just as before, the stone shifted, growing larger than last time, resembling something of a weapon now. Her anger rose within her, watching Aion grin with such uncaring ease, that before she really knew what she was doing, she lunged, aiming for his chest with her new weapon, but was interrupted by a loud cry from behind her. Florette turned her head to see her little sister hunched over their dead mother, sobbing her eyes out, and suddenly, she felt it. A sharp, searing pain rip through her lower belly as claws from the devil tore through her flesh in one foul swoop.

Feeling all strength leave her body as Aion removed his claws, she fell to her knees, only being held up by his grip on her wrist.

She tasted blood as it welled up in her throat, spilling from the corner of her mouth and she turned once more to view her sibling.

“Florette! Big sister!”

‘Oh, Satella…’ Her mind went blank. She suddenly felt cold, and numb, watching the sobbing child, she tried to reach out to her with her last bit of strength, then it was over. She fell limp, allowing the darkness to consume her being.

She was dying.

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Author note: Yeah, this chapter was a tad longer than the last *thank god*. Man, I really really want to bring Joshua in. Dunno why, but he’s probably my second favorite…xd ugh. Oh well…haha…Alrighty, so I’ll try to have the next chapter up pretty quick. Don’t go away, I promise the next chapter will be a lot more exciting…Review please!