The Dream Shifter

Chapter 136

A raised eyebrow was all that Haruo gave him after his comment. He knew what it was that Yuki was implying without having to ask him. He might have been a little too forthcoming with answers. Despite the feeling of being cornered for the story, he was not really as reluctant about it as he thought he was going to be. The past was not really something he told to other people. Mr. Asanuma knew about his past, but that was only because he looked into it and not because Haruo told him. With fading reluctance Haruo sat down and looked across to Yuki. "This stays between us."

"Yeah!" agreed Yuki leaning in a little looking a bit too eager for the story.

Haruo adjusted himself a little catching the bordering excitement from Yuki. "The reason comes from my time at the orphanage…" He had already been working on collecting his thoughts. It had been quite some time since he had left the orphanage, determined never to turn back to it again. When that had happened he buried everything down inside with the plan to forget it. Recalling it back to his conscious was a little challenging, but it seemed that once the door was opened everything moved quickly. The taste of fresh air had been enough to bring the memories alive on their own to crowd out his thoughts. '…I'd been in an orphanage for as long as I could remember back then. It had been that way since I was abandoned by my parents, left alone. I was so young then I can't even remember their faces. I don't know if they're alive or dead and I honestly didn't care. They'd left me alone.'

The orphanage that Haruo was put into was in one of the poorer areas of the city. It had very little funding to support the number of children that stayed. Often they had to steal and beg just to get enough food for the day. It caused the children to band together to look after themselves. Also, it meant that someone inevitably took charge of the g**g of orphans under the pretext of protection.

Katsu was a teenage boy about the age of fourteen; Haruo was only seven at the time. He had been running the orphans since Haruo had been in the orphanage. All of them had no choice in following him since he was the oldest and strongest. The only other boys that were closest in age were four years apart and that ended up meaning a large gap in strength. Katsu ruled by force and anyone that did not obey his orders learned not to make the same mistake a second time.

Child Haruo came back one afternoon with several others of the boys his age. They were all wearing ragged pants and shirts covered in dirt, rips and stains. It was usually the only clothes that they had until they fell apart or out grew them by far too much. 'Having good clothes wasn't really something that we worried about. It was more important to be able to survive.'

As with all days before it, that afternoon was no different for them. They had come back with the day's earnings as they were often called. It was like it was being called work even though they were just hand outs or stolen. 'I stuck with just begging rather than trying to steal. I had seen what had happened to a few of the children that failed. It wasn't something I wanted to tempt.' The group that Haruo was in walked over to Katsu to hand in the money that they had begged off the street or found.

Katsu was leaning against the largest tree in what was considered the front yard of the two story brick orphanage. A fading brick wall surrounded the entire building with barbed wired on top. The front yard was big enough for the twenty-one orphans that stayed, but it was littered with dead plants and trashed materials. It proved to be an entertaining arena for the younger more imaginative children in spite of the danger.

One of the ten year boys, which was like the right hand man for Katsu, had stepped out of the small group of orphans gathered by the tree. He extended out a roughly patched together box meant to appear to be a chest. "The money from today, Katsu…"

The teenage boy looked over at the box and grabbed it quickly. He flipped up the lid and shook the contents a couple times to count up the money. The lid closed sharply with a whimpering dull slam. "This is even less than yesterday!" he snapped back at the boy. Katsu glared down at the kid using his height and build to easily intimidate him.

"B-b-but there w-weren't many people out today!"

Katsu raised his fist without stopping to punch the boy for speaking back to him. "No excuses! Yer not getting any food today!" He hefted the box under his arm and walked away from the boy, who was knocked over into two of the smaller eight year olds. "Maybe hunger'll give ya motivation to find a better location!"

Haruo had been keeping to the back when it happened having learned to stay out of sight as much as possible. Once Katsu was far enough away he helped the fallen up. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Katsu walking up towards the main door of the orphanage. There was an adult coming out as though he was on a schedule. Katsu was meeting the head of the orphanage. The two briefly exchanged words before Katsu handed over some of the money earned. 'Katsu continued to help line the pockets of the adults working at the orphanage while we saw no change in the condition. It took me a while to realize that the money was just being pocketed rather than getting us food or new clothes. It was just the way things were; everyone was selfish. It was the only way to survive.'

Night had finally fallen on the orphanage meaning that it was meal time for everyone. The meager servings were their second meal of the day. The only other meal they would receive was in the morning. If they ate anything else it was because they got it out in the city. Everyone was crowded together in a single large room on the second floor; the first floor was exclusively used for the adults and Katsu. It was Katsu that gave out the food and especially tonight to ensure punishment was dealt.

The crowded room fit everyone on the floor with barely enough space for their arms to move around. Only Katsu made sure that he had plenty of breathing room for himself. He watched everyone before starting to work on his large portioned meal that was still mostly just bread.

Thinking that it was safe being crowded out Haruo tried to give a little of his food over to the older boy. Haruo thought he had been secretive enough, but Katsu caught what Haruo was doing in an instant. He was standing over a seated Haruo looking two or three times his size. "Punishment means no food kid!" He quickly rammed his foot into Haruo's stomach knocking the wind out of him as well as some of the bread he had been chewing on. Katsu did the same to the boy Haruo tried to help until he dropped the bread. "If ya givin' it anyway ya must not be hungry, kid!" The little food that Haruo had left was taken away from him and Katsu marched away leaving both of them hungry.

Haruo nursed his stomach still feeling the stinging as he crumpled on the cold floor unable to move. The other boys turned away not wanting to make eye contact with Haruo. They understood punishment clearly enough. 'When we slept we had to share the few rooms available. We were always crowded together and others just held on close. It was crowded where ever I went. Those were the lessons that I learned. I was young and naïve not understanding what the true nature of people were, but I learned.'

A twelve year old Haruo stood at the entrance of the orphanage that had been his personal hell for his entire life. It was spring and nearly time for the new school year. He looked back at the building in determination that hardened his features. 'I was certain that I had to get out of that place. Up until that point the orphanage had been my guardian and paid what little it tried for my elementary school. I was determined to go the rest on my own so I didn't have to return to that place. But there was one obstacle still in my path…Katsu…'

Katsu blocked Haruo's way out into the city. It had only been on the last day Haruo had at the orphanage that he told everyone that he was leaving. When Katsu found out he showed up to make sure that did not happen. After Katsu was old enough he left the orphanage, but used all of the orphans through the force of his small street g**g to enforce his rule over them still. In Katsu's mind Haruo still belonged to him. "Where'd ya think yer goin'?"

"I'm leaving…" Haruo responded almost empty of any feeling. The years had stripped him of most of his emotions and his determination was the only thing left. It removed any fear he had for Katsu. He stood up to Katsu ignoring the height difference.

"Looks like ya found a sense of humor, kid!" laughed Katsu as two other teenage boys showed up behind him, both at least seventeen. The rough and cold look in their eyes made it clear that they were not above breaking a little kid like Haruo to get their point across. "Yer stayin'!" Katsu threw the first punch that Haruo took head on. It was not enough to knock him down to Katsu's surprised, but he did not stop. The other two boys quickly joined in the fun until Haruo laid on the floor a bruised and bloodied mess.

Eventually, Katsu believed he got his point across and left with his message given to Haruo. Haruo's defiant eyes stared out at the cloudy sky as he lay on his back. 'Nothing was going to stop me. I left that day and never returned. I was going to walk on my own. I needed no help any longer…'

Haruo looked back up at Yuki with his tale coming to a close. He was not sure why he had said so much to some he barely knew, but after he started he could not stop himself. "I don't like crowds because it reminds me of the crowded orphanage and how selfish people truly are."

It took a few moments for Yuki to take it all in. Once he had finished understanding it everything felt a little heavier than he had expected from listening. 'I thought I just asked why he didn't like crowds. I didn't think I'd get a life story out of him. Was all of that necessary to tell me? But it certainly explains a few things.' Yuki stood up from his crate feeling his legs getting a little antsy. He stretched his arms and arched his back until he felt everything was worked out. "But you know not everyone is selfish, Haruo. It's a little closed minded to make a generalization based on a terrible environment from your childhood."

Haruo remained quiet after Yuki's words. There were a few things he had to say, but knew already from what little he had seen of Yuki that it was not going to be an argument he could win. It was clear to him that Yuki's view of the world was one not filled with the deep scarring that he had to endure. Yuki was never going to understand. 'It's time to leave…I've said far more than I should have…' Haruo's balanced level headed sense had started to return him back to his familiar ground.

"I found ya!" yelled a familiar voice laced with barely controlled rage. Takaoka stood half a block down the grass street with his boys from his g**g along with several more shadowed figures behind them.

Yuki could tell immediately that the guy had eyes for him, probably revenge. 'Seems they're back and with even more this time. Not that'll matter…'

A new figure much older than Takaoka stepped out from the group taking stand a few footsteps away. It was a young man in his early twenties with a slicked back hair style that ended at the back of his neck. He was dressed in a heavy leather jacket and dark blue jeans with a white and red shirt underneath. The way that the others in the g**g acted he was important despite looking a little higher class than the rest of the mess. "Long time no see…kid…" smirked the man.

Haruo tilted his head over his shoulder feeling that the voice was distantly familiar. It only took a single second for him to immediately recognize the man. "…Katsu…"