Chapter One

Shiraishi didn't want to remember the years when she drifted in and out of consciousness, couldn't make out the things surrounding her or couldn't understand the babble of voices that often cooed her to sleep. It was strange that she could remember those early memories; like her first steps or saying her first word. She knew better than to be smug about it and brag about remembering when her brother, at the age of three, had peed himself when their father had decided to start wearing that god awful mask and startled the little boy until he wet himself. Although it was funny, she would keep her mouth shut.

She didn't know what was so special about her that made her remember those things, and for now didn't want to know. For now, she would just pass it off as her being too observant even at that age. Shiraishi didn't think her father or her brother would find it weird, since her father had to deal with weird things all the time. It was his job actually to look at and decipher things that weren't ordinary. But she still would keep her mouth shut.

Who knew what Kishitani Shingen would do if he found out that his own daughter had recollection of having done drugs -although she hasn't- and she somehow knows what happens to people- particularly females- behind bars? Shiraishi shivered at the thought.

'Are you cold?' She had to blink twice before reading the message on the notepad that had been pushed into her line of vision. Looking up, Shiraishi was met with the familiar ghost of black smoke.

"I'm fine, Celty." Shiraishi assured her, her earlier thoughts coming to a stop from the interruption.

Another reason why Shiraishi didn't think her family would be too shocked about something that was so out of the ordinary, was because of Celty. They did live with a headless woman, who is a Dullahan -a headless fairy –, from what her father had explained to her.

It had only been two years since Celty started living with the Kishitanis and already Shiraishi had gotten used to the woman. Not as much as her father and brother - who was awestruck by said woman - but enough that she didn't shy away from her.

"Ne, Shira-nee, we'll be late if you keep daydreaming like that," Shinra complained, his school bag on his back, a pout on his face from surely having to go to school and having to be away from Celty. Shiraishi would never understand her brother's almost morbid fascination over Celty. She would even say it was worse than their father's.

"I was not daydreaming!"

Waving his hand in a dismissive fashion, which makes the six-year-old grit her teeth, Shinra lets his attention go back to Celty. She could almost see the brown eyes light up every time he looked at Celty.

"Celty, you're taking us to school, right?"

As if he didn't know the answer to that question. Either way, the woman responded by the way of the writing on the notebook and showing her response to the eight-year-old, who actually lets out a loud groan of disappointment, before heading for the apartment's elevator. The three hardly went outside due to Shinra preferring the indoors and Celty not really going outside for obvious reasons. The exceptions being for school and necessities.

It was a shame too, as Shiraishi rather liked the outdoors but could only leave the apartment if either Shinra or Celty were with her. Although she couldn't take the two to school, Celty did watch them from the safe haven of the balcony. Looking up, Shiraishi waved at her as she donned a helmet and waved back. Not liking her to have all of Celty's attention, Shinra pushed the brown haired girl slightly to the side and waved rather enthusiastically up at Celty.

"Bye, Celty~!" Rolling her eyes, she began to walk, not looking behind her to see if her idiot of a brother was following.

"W-wait up, Shira-nee! You don't even know where the school is!"

"I was with dad when he registered me so I know where I'm going."

She still lets him take her by the hand though. She didn't want Celty to scold her on her first day of school. It felt nostalgic for some reason. Like she knew the feeling of nervousness that came when they came closer to the school grounds, that was actually not far from where they lived.

"I guess I can introduce you to my friends," Shinra said, leading Shiraishi through the crowds of people. Some of them cast the two children curious looks. It most likely wasn't normal to see such young children by themselves. But they didn't stop or trouble the two.

'Good.' Shiraishi thought, matching some of the strangers' looks with a defying one of her own that actually looked too mature for a six year old, which made them all look away almost immediately. 'I really do hate such huge crowds.'

"Why? I can make my own friends."

She was curious about her brother wanting to introduce her to his friends. Was he trying to help her make friends? Did he just want to tease her in front of them?

"Because I want them to see how cute you are, Imouto!"

Shinra looked to the girl and gave her a smile as his eyes sparkled from behind his square-framed glasses. At least it looked like it sparkled to Shiraishi.

"You're weird."

Sometimes, Shiraishi really didn't understand how her brother thought.

...'...

After the big ceremony welcoming the newcomers to the school, and welcoming back the rest of the students, the Kishitani siblings were broken up. Shinra, after making sure that his sister had everything - much to her annoyance - made his way to his class as Shiraishi settled into her own. Somehow she felt uncomfortable being surrounded by children of her own age. Maybe it was because they were loud and acted a little too babyish for her taste.

Some were even crying for their parents. Surely she didn't have to suffer like this for a whole year? She even saw a boy pick his nose before licking the same finger. That memory would forever haunt her and make her want to hurl.

She did manage to make friends with one of the non-crybabies who didn't eat the boogers from their noses. An adorable girl that introduced herself as Tokiwa Mai. She was quiet and didn't whine as much as the other students and was very diligent in learning to perfect her calligraphy. She was terrible at it.

"Your kanji is better, Shiraishi-san," she mumbled, looking from the paper that the teacher had given each of them to Shiraishi's. Unlike her god awful scrawls, Shiraishi's looked better, though the brunette's wasn't all that much better. Mai's dark eyes that Shiraishi had a hard time trying to find the pupils of, widened as she seemed to have thought of something.

"You should teach me!"

Her loud exclamation has a few students looking back at them, and Shiraishi began to think that maybe Mai was naturally a loud person as she talked rather loud most of the time.

"I guess I could."

But Shiraishi didn't know how she could. Maybe it would get better if they both just kept practicing. Just then, Guzen-sensei - their teacher - called for lunch just as a bell was heard throughout the class. Most of the children jumped up from their seats, clearly glad for the time to go out to play and eat. Shiraishi was one of the exceptions, though Mai did cheer and immediately whipped out a bento box.

"You'll eat with me, right?"

How could she refuse? But the sound of their class door sliding open had Shiraishi looking up to find her brother grinning widely, his eyes clearly trained on her.

"Who's that?"

"Shira-nee~! Let's go eat!"

Shiraishi didn't know how he reached over so fast, but Shinra was pulling her out of her seat at the same time as he picked up her bag.

"We can eat in my class."

"H-hey! Where do you think you're carrying Shiraishi-san?!" Mai exclaimed.

Shinra stopped in his tracks as a short girl appeared in his way, brown eyes set into a glare.

"You can't have her! She's eating with me!"

Shiraishi took this time to snatch her hand back from her brother and collect her bag that held her lunch in it from his hands as he stared dumbly at the still glaring dark haired girl.

"Why don't we all just eat together?"

"Huh?" "Eh?" Both turned to see Shiraishi tidying her desk before turning her attention back to them.

"Let's eat together." She repeated; this time they seemed to hear her as Shinra shrugged and told them to follow him. Mai huffed, but followed after Shiraishi, her bento box clutched in her little hands. It seemed that Shinra's class wasn't all that far away from theirs as it didn't take too long to find.

It wasn't all that different from Shiraishi's, except that each child had their own desk and chair instead of the two to one seat in her class. But her brother seemed to have thought ahead because at the back of the class was a cluster of chairs and benches pushed together, along with a boy sitting in one of the chairs, looking quite annoyed.

"Sorry I took so long, Shizuo-kun."

She could almost see the goofy smile on her brother's face, even though she was behind him.

"We can eat now."

"Took you long enough, idiot."

It was then that the boy noticed the two girls behind the sheepish Shinra. His brown eyes narrowed in on them.

"Eh? Who are they?"

"This is my sister Shiraishi!"

Shinra explained, pulling Shiraishi from behind him and placing her in front of him with his hands placed on her shoulders. Shiraishi felt her eyebrow beginning to twitch as her brother went on to explain that she was his 'little imouto' which was stupid. Didn't imouto mean 'little sister' already? Why add on 'little' to it?

"Hey! You forgot to introduce me!" came Mai's voice, clearly not liking to be ignored.

"Oh," As if now remembering the six year old, Shinra waved at the girl. "And that's her friend."

"My name's Tokiwa Mai." Mai said, while she shoved Shinra out of the way and smiled at the boy that Shinra had introduced as Shizuo. "Nice to meet you, Shizuo-san."

"Nice to meet you too," Shizuo said, shaking the girl's outstretched hand.

"Hey, how come you didn't act so nice when you met me?!" Shinra asked, as they all took seats.

"Because I don't like you," the girl replied, opening her lunch right after sticking her tongue out on at Shinra.

"Eh?!" Shinra yelled, comically shocked over the statement.

"I didn't know Shinra had a sister."

Looking to the boy, Shiraishi smiled slightly, ignoring the bickering between Shinra and Mai.

"I'm surprised he has a friend."

Shiraishi was sure her brother didn't hear her as he usually would complain on her lack of confidence in him. He really did get dramatic over the simplest of things. Which kind of annoyed the six-year-old sometimes. Her brother just knew how to be annoying.

"He forced me to be." Shizuo wrinkled his nose in a childish manner while he took a sip of his milk. "Said something about me being interesting enough and a whole lot of big words."

"That sounds like him." She couldn't help but laugh because that was so like him; wanting to be mysterious and all, though most of the time he came off as being weird.

"Heiwajima Shizuo." The boy stuck out his hand, introducing himself though Shinra had already done that. His mother had always said to shake hands when introducing yourself to someone. She said that it was polite way to do it.

"Kishitani Shiraishi." Shaking his hand, the four children dropped into a silence. It was then that Mai noticed something weird.

"Where is everyone?" she asked, looking around the bare classroom. She knew some of them might be out in the playground but some of them had to have started to eat right?

"Most likely in the cafeteria," Shinra answered. "It's really noisy there, so Shizuo and I usually eat in class."

The two girls nodded in understanding before they continued to eat. When it was time to head back to class, the four said their good-byes. After assuring her brother she knew where to go, the two girls make made their way back to class.

"Your brother isn't all that bad, I guess," Mai allowed, putting away her lunch box when they had returned. "But don't tell him I said that!"

"Don't worry," Shiraishi said, a smile coming to her face. "Your secret's safe with me."

Okay, so um this is my revised version of chapter one. I decided on past tense-as you can see there- and so, events leading up to the canon arc are going to be in past tense :3

As you would know, I am on a hiatus with this story as I am currently editing the chapters WITH MY AWESOME BETA *0* OH yeah, I got a beta *does little dance*

Thanks are going out to my lovely beta (that honestly I don't know what I would have done without) AliceInTheSunlight ^_^ Love you hun

And also, Animefreak1145 for inspiring this story with hers :* Love you too hun

#Edited