SHIRATORI HARUKA
10 years old ★ HUMAN CHILD ★ MALE
CW: implied child neglect / abuse / abandonment He was never part of the plan. His mother was in her final year of high school and studying for her college entrance exams. Her parents placed a lot of pressure on her to do well and constantly compared her to her older sister that had gotten into a prestigious university and was now successful in her career. It was a common story, the one where the overworked and stressed out teenager throws herself into the arms of her boyfriend to relieve that stress. She found out she was pregnant a few weeks later, and her world came crashing down around her. Unwilling to commit, her boyfriend broke up with her. On top of that, her father kicked her out despite her mother's protests. She moved in with her sister and managed to finish out the rest of the school year. College, however, was out of the question. Haruka was born that March. His mother played the doting parent role for eight months. It was around this time Haruka started fussing more at night. He was an absolute angel during the day, but he refused to be alone in his room at night. Stressed out, his mother coordinated with her sister to get a babysitter that would take care of him each night. At first, it was so she could sleep. After a few weeks, she was able to secure a job at a local 7-Eleven. A night shift. Their scheduled synced up so they were both sleeping during the day (with his mother waking up every few hours when he did) and separated at night. The babysitter changed multiple times over the course of two years. Some could not keep up with the scheduling while others quit after their worries about Haruka fell on deaf ears. When a sitter could not be scheduled, Haruka was left in the care of a neighbor that lived a few apartments over. His mother considered leaving him there after hearing that he fell asleep after only a little bit of fussing, but she was talked out of it by her sister. They thought it might have meant he was growing out of it, but any progress made in another's home immediately reversed when he returned. They ignored the fearful look in his eyes as he stared down the closet door. By the time he turned three and could start attending the nearby daycare (which threw off his night owl schedule), his mother started dating again. Most men lasted only a night, short flings that ended the moment they found out she had a toddler. The one man that stuck it out ended up swiftly marrying her by the end of the year. His aunt was hesitant to let them move out, not quite approving of her sister's new husband, but there was nothing she could do but make sure Haruka had her phone number memorized. Just in case. There was three years of no contact until she received a call in the middle of the night. It was the police. Haruka was in custody. She was dressed and out the door in under ten minutes. According to the police, he was found wandering the streets. This might not have seemed so strange had it been during the day; however, in the middle of the night in his pajamas and without his shoes? When they picked him up, he refused to speak. They struggled to even get his name, but he had responded (sort of) when asked if he knew his parents' phone number. They allowed him to enter the number on the phone since his mouth remained shut. Instead of his mother's number, however, he entered his aunt's. They were able to get more information about him during the phone call, and they dispatched an officer to his home address to check on his parents. When his aunt arrived, so did the news that his parents were nowhere to be found. The front door was open, and the house was void of life. Trash littered the floor (Haruka made an attempt to keep it clean at one point but eventually gave up). The fridge was empty (Haruka was underweight). The electricity had been turned off (the water had a few more days left before overdue bills would have shut it off as well). No one could get in contact with his mother nor his step-father. Guardianship of Haruka fell to his aunt, though she knew that keeping him in the city was a bad idea. She cleared it with the police before they left, and Tokyo was behind them only a few hours later. The trip was hastily thrown together, and they ate breakfast at a gas station as the sun began to rise. Haruka passed out in the car, the rumble of the engine lulling him into a deep, much-needed sleep. When he awoke, he was no longer in the car. His aunt had gone ahead and carried him once they had arrived, and he was greeted to the sight of wooden beams overhead. She had taken him to Tsumago, an old post town in which the residents all strive to recreate the original atmosphere of the Edo period. The door slid open, and an elderly lady stepped inside. Surprised to see him awake, a smile wrinkled the corners of her eyes. She introduced herself as his great grandmother on his mother's side. He eventually met his great grandfather once he returned from his walk. His aunt stayed overnight before heading out, leaving Haruka in the care of his great grandparents. His hesitance ebbed, and he found himself rapidly growing comfortable in his new surroundings. It was easier to sleep at night as the small house required all three of them to sleep in the same room. The best part? There were no closets. Haruka gradually began to open up, first mumbling small answers before he started speaking up. By the first snow of winter, he could smile again. Their neighbors quickly warmed up to him (one of them even offered to teach him the basics of kendo), and he fell into his new role of replicating the past with ease, starting with the small errands he was given to familiarize himself with his surroundings and the rest of the people in Tsumago. Unfortunately, all good things have to come to an end. Compulsory schooling dictated that he would have to return to school eventually. They had been sending him his assignments to complete, but they became more and more adamant about him return to school since his condition was improving. His aunt was able to transfer him to an elementary school closer to his new home, and she returned for a brief visit to take him to his first day. Since his great grandparents did not own a car, she insisted that they took a bus instead of her car to make sure he knew which bus to take each day. His great grandmother made sure to walk him to the bus station each morning, though he was able to convince her to stop waiting for him after school. He knew the way home. He was ostracized in the beginning. He had transferred near the end of the school year, and it was soon a well-known fact that he lived in Tsumago. He even brought a change of clothes in his bag so he could change out of his uniform and into something more suitable for Tsumago. Haruka thought nothing of it and ignored it. He was fine sitting on the outside, and he would fill the free time drawing while the other kids chattered and played. His teacher was worried when she saw the contents of his sketchbook. She pulled him aside one day to ask about the drawings, but she only received a small, vague answer. "Old nightmares." Nightmares that had not visited since leaving Tokyo. Monsoon season hit hard and fast, and Haruka found himself staying at another student's house because the buses stopped running after heavy rains began to flood the streets. While he would not go as far as to say the other student was a friend, they were on friendly enough terms. More than anything, their mother pitied Haruka and had a tendency to invite him over for dinner often. That was how he ended up spending the night at their place while they waited out the rain. While he had been given the option to wear a pair of pajamas from the other's closet, he instantly refused. Closet. He had thought he was over it, but fear and anxiety had a tendency to creep up when you least expected it. Instead, he changed into his other clothes, content with sleeping in those over his uniform. At some point during the night, the other boy had gotten up to use the restroom. Haruka immediately woke up to the sound of the closet door creaking open. By the time the other student returned, Haruka was gone. Notes: - His original scarer ignored all protocol when it came to their craft, leaving Haruka traumatized. - After scare power was outlawed, another monster took the original's place. But, this was not a jokester. No, it was someone that had taken his door from the factory. Another scarer, also ignoring protocol. Very illegal. Extremely traumatic. - Haruka convinced himself it had all been in his head after moving to Tsumago since the lack of closets and sleeping in the same room as others kept anything from manifesting before him. - Haruka cannot sleep without hearing someone else breathing next to him. He has had a lot of issues sleeping since being kidnapped. - While a decent artist, he actually prefers singing. - His kendo skills are rough, but that won't stop him from putting on a brave mask in front of others by trying to fend off likely non-hostile monsters with anything that could even remotely be used as a pretend sword (even though he's terrified and trying to suppress his trembling). - He has enough English fluency to get by, but fast talkers and complex words tend to confuse him.
Played By: AO BING	Face Claim:Kuro

ACCEPTED!