Prologue
Min-Min sat on the young girl's shoulder as the taxi dropped the young girl off. This little girl was Sannakii Niwa. It was ten o'clock. And it was July 22… two days after her parents and grandmother's death. And no one decided to take her in. So she had to stay at her Aunt's house… and her cousin, Daisuke Niwa. She walked up to the door warily, as the black cat upon her shoulder pressed her head against Sannakii's check, purring loudly. The white, crescent moon scar over her right eye glowed under the moon's rays, along with the white star on the front of her long tail.
"It's only me and you now Min-Min… Mama, Papa, and Grandma are all gone. And no one else will take us. Let's hope they accept me here…" Sannakii sighed, brushing her light blue hair out of her dark gray eyes, which were accented with black eyeliner, which made them look more elegant. She walked up to the door and quietly knocked on the door. Then she waited. About three minutes passed by and her Aunt opened the door for her. Sannakii blinked her eyes from the sudden brightness of the house spilling upon her night-accustomed eyes.
"Ah! It's Sannakii! Come in, it's a little cold out tonight!" Daisuke's mom, whom Sannakii called 'Aunt' and that's it, ushered her in. Daisuke's grandfather looked at her with an eyebrow raised, as Min-Min met his gaze with a cool, pale blue one. "Sannakii, sweetie, take your coat off and give me your bag! I'll show you where you're staying!" Aunt Niwa said, as Sannakii blinked her eyes a few more times, and then spoke again.
"Where's Daisuke?" She said quietly, and then, suddenly, Aunt Niwa stiffened. She looked to Sannakii with a reassuring smile.
"Daisuke? Oh he's with some friends right now!" She said, and then ushered me up the stairs and into a spare room down a long hallway. It had a big bed, a dresser, and even a table and mirror. Sannakii smiled. "Now, settle yourself in, honey and I'll be downstairs if you need anything!" Aunt Niwa left without another word, as Sannakii flipped the lights on quickly and looked around. Then, she emptied her bag as Min-Min looked out onto the balcony, blinking her eyes once in an entire ten minutes. Sannakii had then gotten changed out of her street clothes and placed on an expensive looking nightgown. It trailed along the floor, and it was as black as night. It had designs of sakura blossoms blooming from the waist and out, and the sleeves were long and transparent.
Min-Min suddenly leapt out onto the balcony of her room, and stood on the pole, meowing to the moon softly. Sannakii ran out; trying to silence the cat, but then spotted a teenager looking at her from the top of another house. She felt his dark purple eyes settle in her own, as his dark purple hair whipped around his head in a passing by wind. Black wings came from his back, as Min-Min yowled out again. The boy then flew upwards and into the ground, where even Min-Min's sharp gaze lost him in the shadows.
Sannakii then ran to her door, only to find it locked shut from the outside. "Wha-" Sannakii tried yanking the door harder. Nothing. She couldn't even hear any of her relatives downstairs; she was placed so far away from the stairwell. Sannakii sighed and then sat down on the edge of her bed, just as Min-Min leapt up and sat upon her lap, purring loudly. Suddenly, she saw her door open, and her cousin stepped in. He looked tired, as if he had run a mile or something like that.
"Hello Sannakii. You finally found a place to stay?" He asked, as Sannakii nodded her head slowly, as if she felt as if she was talking to an idiot. "Ah, I should have known that." Daisuke rubbed the back of his neck, as something that looked like a rabbit jumped on his shoulder. Both the rabbit and Min-Min stared at each other for about two minutes before the rabbit blinked his red eyes. "If you're staying here, you'll be going to my school now too, I guess." Daisuke continued, as finally, Sannakii spoke.
"And I have to wear a uniform… You mom told me." She said, as Daisuke grabbed the rabbit off his shoulder. "What is that anyway?" Sannakii raised an eyebrow at the rabbit, as Daisuke explained.
"This is Wiz. I've had him with me for as long as I can remember. And I see you brought a pet as well…" Daisuke then placed Wiz back on his shoulder, as it tilted his head at Sannakii, who replied back to Daisuke.
"Min-Min. She's been with my family ever since I was born, and she's still as healthy as a young kitten." Sannakii smiled, as she looked at the time. "It was a little late for you to be out with some friends... you know." Sannakii teased, smiling slightly. Daisuke seemed to back away, as if nervous.
"Well… I had some unfinished business to attend to… I'm sorry I have to go! Goodnight!" He ran out of the room as Sannakii shrugged and stood up to close the door. As she did, she closed the windows to the outside, and then laid down on her bad, her long light blue hair resting behind her like a fan, and her bangs resting softly into her eyes. Min-Min rested on her chest, as Sannakii pet Min-Min's head, and then drifted off into a peaceful rest.
"Sannakii for the final time wake up!" Sannakii ignored the voice once more, groaning and turning over. That's when Min-Min bit her ear, and jolted upright, causing Min-Min to leapt up five feet in the air. Sannakii shook her head, her eyes all blurry, until she saw Daisuke's Mom glaring at her. "You're late to school, and on your very first day! Come on, get dressed!" She pushed Sannakii onto the floor and ran out of the room. Sannakii groaned and put on what Aunt Niwa told her to put on. The school's uniform, it seemed to be.
She must have ordered it early… Sannakii thought as she walked over the mirror, and brushed out her messy hair, and then tied it back in a black bow. She then outlined her eyes so professionally with black eyeliner, placed on the right shoes, and then walked out of her room, Min-Min walking on dainty legs behind her. Daisuke must have just woken up as well, because he stretched and looked as if he had slept for twelve years and still wasn't ready to wake up. "Morning." Sannakii said, stretching and yawning.
"Morning." Daisuke said back, just as he motioned out the door. Sannakii instinctively grabbed a bag that had her initials on it; she thought that probably should be brought to school with her. She walked behind Daisuke, and then spotted a newspaper headline. It was in big, bold, red letters. When Daisuke's eyes fell upon the title, he kicked the newspaper away as if he didn't like what it said. It read…
DARK STRIKES AGAIN, STEALING THE FAMOUS PAININTG LERUVE
Sannakii blinked her eyes several times, and then picked up the paper and flipped to the second page. Another big headline was there. Wow, must be 'Giant, Bold, Red Headline Day if I didn't know any better… She thought to herself, as she read this new headline.
NEW THEIF APPROACHES: SHADOW IS TO STEAL THE SILVER CROWN
This one Daisuke did pay attention too. He blinked several times and then shrugged. "As if Dark wasn't enough, now we have a new lunatic wandering the streets at night. This is such a great place to live in…" Daisuke muttered, as Sannakii threw the paper over her shoulder back into a trash bin. She sighed and stretched, as she walked towards the school Daisuke was leading her too.
Sannakii sighed and looked around. So many new faces, a very scary time to be in. She hated new people, she was afraid of not fitting in. But as if right on cue, another girl with short, reddish brown hair ran towards her. A crazy looking friend had already dragged off Daisuke, as the girl in front of her stopped and began to speak.
"Hey, you're new here right? Why were you walking with Niwa?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at Sannakii.
"I'm living in his house because it's the only place I can stay as of right now…" Sannakii said, looking to the strange girl, who seemed jealous. The girl sighed, and then looked back up at Sannakii.
"Alrighty then, I better introduce myself. I am Riku Harada. And you are?" She said, as Sannakii wasted no time in picking up the conversation. Riku extended her hand even before Sannakii spoke.
"I am Sannakii Niwa." She smiled, and took Riku's hand and shook it. "I hope you can help me around school for the first few days, because I don't know that much about this school… only the things Daisuke told me this morning…" Sannakii said, seeing Daisuke being mauled by one of his friend's… well… that's what the guy seemed like. Sannakii smiled, and the nodded to Riku as the bell rang.
She cast one last look at Daisuke, and then felt a tug that seemed to lurch out her heart. She heard a faint whisper in her head… Tonight… will be glorious… Sannakii rubbed her temples to make sure she wasn't imagining it, and then was pulled by the arm by Riku and rushed into the school. Today... was going to be a very long day.