The moving truck bounced up and down as it traveled down the country road. We're almost there ... I sat alone in the back of the truck, thinking about what this new town will be like, my parents right behind us in a two seated car. I've heard lots of strange stories about it, but none that I believe to be true. When the truck had slowed to a stop, I knew we had reached our destination. There were no stops on this road, considering every one here walks where ever they need to go. The back was pulled open and I saw light for the first time in hours. Once my eyes adjusted to the blast, the opening revealed my father and my new house in the town of Hinamizawa.

"Come on Kaari, you haven't been in there for that long," His black hair showed signs of gray in the bright sun and the light reflected off his glasses hid his eyes.

"Coming!" Slowly, I made my way past all the furniture and out off the truck. The sun's raise made the outside much hotter than inside my transportation. I adjusted my skirt and attempted to straighten out the wrinkles that had formed on my shirt from sitting for so long, rolled up my long sleeves, and followed my mother into the house.

One of the movers who was familiar with he house showed me and my mom around. It was a fairly small house, two stories and no basement. The first floor consisted of the kitchen occupying the left side of the whole room, and the living room, separated by a thin piece of wall open on both ends. The stairs were to the right of the entrance. Upstairs was a small hallway with an all glass wall on one side and a thinner, longer hallway on the other. Down the hallway was four rooms, three bedrooms and the bathroom.

My mom stopped and told me that my room would be the one at the end of the hallway, across from the guest room and next to the bathroom. I stepped into the room and my mom went back downstairs to help my dad unload. I stood alone in the dark room, battered curtains covering the single window that stood across from me. My moms gonna need to change those... A strange feeling came across me when a wind pushed my short brown hair around into my face. It didn't phase me at first, until I realized that none of the windows were open. But still, the wind whistled a soft tune in my ear as it danced with my hair. Frightened, I ran out the door, downstairs, and back outside where the breeze was real.

I rushed up to my mom who was unloading some clothes from the back of her car, her blonde hair sat still down her back while mine still floated lightly around in my face. "Hey mom, can I walk around a bit and get to know the town better?"

"Sure. Just be back for lunch. And if you get lost I'm sure the nice townspeople can help you back."

"Thanks," I turned around and stood by the road, stopping to pull up my stockings that had shifted with my running, and started towards inward town. I didn't really want to leave, but I just wanted to get away from that house. There's just something weird about it.

Even though I'm young, I can still take care of myself just fine. I kind of needed to learn how to because my parents both work and I'm stuck home alone most of the day. I walked confidently down the rocky road, observing every little nest and tree in sight. Only slightly down from our house, there was another house that looked like it had been vacant for a while. The strange feeling came back to me, but instead of a wind, a chill went down my back. I started walking faster, trying not to look back at the house. Maybe all the rumors are true...

I kept walking until I reached town. There weren't a lot of people around, but it was a calming place. I lived in the country before I moved here, so it wasn't much different than what I'm used to. There were a lot of small stores and restaurants and a few houses here and there. I stopped and stared at a tiny manga shop. I decided not to go in. I don't even have any money. Before I could start walking again, two girls walked out of the game shop across the path. One of them had long, green hair that was tied back into a ponytail. She looked like a tomboy the way she talked and the expressions on her face. The other had short orange hair that was slightly longer in the front. She was carrying the box to a game that I'm guessing they just bought. The green haired one pointed me out to the other. I waved nicely, hoping they would come over and show me around. Me, being my stubborn self, didn't want to ask.

My prayers were soon answered when the orange haired one came running over. I expected her to just say hi and introduce herself, but instead she jumped me, almost knocking me over in her grasp. "Mii-chan! She is soo cute! I know she's new to town, but I just need to take her home!"

The green haired girl calmly walked over and attempted to pry the other off me. "Rena, you seriously have to stop doing this to people! You're gonna start scaring them away!"

"But Mii-chan..." Rena slowly pulled away from me. I straightened my clothes again and looked at the two. "Hi. I'm Rena, and this is Mii-chan!"

"My name is Sonozaki Mion, but you can just call me Mion, I don't mind. You must be Nakamora." Mion patted the younger one's head to try and cheer her up.

"Uhh... Yeah. I'm Kaari Nakamora. How did you know?"

"This is a small village as you can see. Not many people live here, and the ones that do know everyone else in the village. So when someone moves here, word gets around, and it's pretty obvious when there's stranger wandering around."

"Kaari Nakamora! Even her name is cute!" Mion held on to the collar of Rena's dress so she wouldn't hug me again.

"We could show you around if you'd like." Mion picked up the game and motioned for me to follow her and Rena when they started walking. "Come on."

"Oh... Okay." I trailed behind them, making sure to keep my distance from Rena, not wanting to get attacked again.

We passed a few houses, Mion and Rena telling me each person who lived there, and they pointed out their favorite shops and hang outs. We finally came across the school that I'd be attending with the two. It didn't look that much like a school. It was a small building, like the others in this village, with only a few rooms. It seemed impossible to hold all the different grades in different rooms. There just wasn't enough room. Then again, Mion said there isn't a lot of people living here.

"We don't have separate classes here. We all just gather in this one room. The teacher has to teach kids of all ages. But she gets help from the older kids. Everyone works together to help each other learn." Well, Mion answered all my questions.

"Wow... This is really different compared to my old school." I didn't have a lot of friends at my other school, so I didn't mind leaving it so much. I was almost happy. Everyone at my school was mean. But these people seem nice so far.

"Yeah, people always say that when they first move here. You'll get used to it. And hey, that means we'll always be in the same class no matter what!" Rena smiled and nodded to Mion's words.

My stomach growled and I realized I haven't been paying attention to the time.

"You hungry? Well, it's no surprise. It's almost lunch time."

"Mii-chan! We should take Kaa-chan to that diner that's close to the manga store! I saw her looking at it when we met her!" Rena was getting all excited at the thought.

"That's not a bad idea," Mion said, taking the game from earlier and throwing it into the back closet of the class room. "How about it Kaari?"

As tempting as it was to go and get free food away from my mother's horrible cooking, I couldn't. "Sorry, I promised my mom I'd be home for lunch."

"Ohh..." A strong look of sadness came over Rena's face. "I guess we'll just take you home then." Good. I didn't have to ask for help again. This village is small, but it can get confusing.

The walk back was quieter than the walk to the school because there wasn't much to talk about. Mion and Rena asked random questions about me and my old town, which I would answer with one word answers, not wanting to talk a lot.

"What's your problem?" Mion asked suddenly, stopping and turning to face me. "You haven't said much this whole time. You haven't even smiled!" She grabbed my cheeks and started stretching them upward in an attempt to make me at least look like I'm smiling.

Small tears formed in my eyes from pain and anger. Mostly anger. "Caah yuu pweesh shtop?" I don't think she understood, and continued to stretch my face, laughing.

"Mii-chan, stop it! Maybe she's just sad from having to leave her old village..."

"Hmm... Alright," She let go and I rubbed my cheeks to try and rub the stinging away. "Sorry, you just seemed so gloomy. It must be hard to move while you're young. Having to leave your friends and house behind..." I didn't even like my old house. It was rotted and made weird creaking noises every night. I never got enough sleep living there. "But don't worry! You've already made two new great friends!" Great's not the word I'd use. More like hyperactive. And spazzy.

I thanked Rena for saving me and we started back down the path. As we neared the empty house, Mion and Rena grew quieter and quieter until it was just silence, other than our foot steps and the occasional cry of the cicadas. Before we even reached the weird house, the two stopped. "I'm sorry. We can't go any farther than this." Rena's voice was different than before. It was calmer. Creepier.

"Yes. We have to go now. We'll see you later." Even Mion's voice seemed darker. Menacing almost.

"Ok... Bye." I started walking back alone. I looked back every few seconds, but they didn't leave. Mion and Rena just stood still, watching me walk back. This town is starting to freak me out...

When I finally got back to my house, my parents were just about done unpacking their things. I looked around inside for a clock and found one on the partial wall dividing the kitchen and living room. It was exactly 12 o'clock noon. From the doorway, I could see the plates of food on the counter. I shut the door behind me and walked into the kitchen where my mom was putting away the ingredients she used to make our lunch. My dad came in from the other side, grabbed a plate, and walked back out. Surprisingly my mother didn't try to cook today, and just made sandwiches. After she noticed me, she grabbed both plates and walked over. "Here you go sweety. We don't have a lot of food in the house right now, so we'll just have to make due with simple meals for now. Come, sit with me and your father and tell us about the village."

I sat down on the couch next to my mom. I slowly ate the peanut butter and jelly sandwich she had prepared for me and told her about Mion and Rena and the school. I left out the part with them stopping and staring at me as I walked back. I didn't want her worry. But I did mention about them asking me out for lunch. "Well, that's a nice idea. We should invite them out so we can introduce ourselfs. Do you remember where they live?"

"Yeah..." I slightly remember where Rena pointed out her house. Hopfully they have phones so I don't have to go search for Mion.

"Great! Can you go ask them for us? While you're gone, I'll finish up your room and get it nice and tidy."

"Alright," I walked over and put my plate in the sink. My mother had written down information like our phone number, adress, and names so they can discuss what time and what restaurant. "Hey mom, can I have some money?"

"Sure, what for?"

"I saw a manga shop when I first got into town and I wanted to look through some books."

"Alrighty," She handed me the ten dollars she pulled out of her purse. "Take your time. You can even hang out with Rena for a bit if you want."

"Okay!" I slowly closed the door on my way out. I didn't want to spend much time with Rena. I mostly just wanted to stop by the manga store, but I guess I'll do that on my way home. I need something new to read. I started down the path, slowing down to a stop when I reached the empty house. I stared at it for a second. I felt like something was pulling me in. I tryed to ignored it, but all of the sudden, a huge gust came, pushing me towards the house. I held on strong to the money and the note, and rushed down the path until I reached town.

I passed the manga shop before I got to Rena's, but decided to just get to Rena's and get back so I could have more time to look around. I knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. Not long after, Rena answered the door. "Kaari!" She hugged me again. "I didn't have to bring you to my house, you came to me!"

"Uhh Rena? I have a note for your parents... From my parents... Could you please get off me?" I started trying to squirm out of her arms.

"He he, sorry." She let go. "My parents are out right now. What's the note about?"

"It's just some information... My parents want to meet with your parents. They need some new friends too. They want us all to go out to eat tonight." I handed the note to her, hiding the money in my other hand back.

"Well, they won't be back for a while, but that should be fine. Do you want to stay here until they come back?"

"No thanks... I promiced my parents I would come back home imediatly soo..." Of course I'm going to lie. I really don't want to stay here.

"Ohh... That's ok I guess. What is that money for?" How did she...?

"My mom wanted me to stop by the food store and get some... Bread." Lie lie lie. I hope she can't tell...

"Alright. See you tonight then."

"See you."

She closed the door, and from behind it I could hear her saying "I get to have Kaari all to myself tonight! Gahh I could just eat her up for dinner!" I don't think I'm going to sit anywhere near her. Or I'll just pretend I'm sick.

I was finally able to take my first steps into the manga store. It was very small, but it had a nice collection of all kinds of books. For once I truely smiled since I got to this village. I looked around and found a few titles i was interested in. In the back of the store, I found a book called Oyashiro-sama's curse. Having caught my intrest, I pulled it out and flipped through it, but it wasn't even a manga, it was a regular reading book. It still intrested me, and it would probably last longer than a manga, so I decided to buy it.

When I walked back into my house, my mom was talking on the phone with Rena's mom. I guess it didn't take long for her parents to get back. I still wasn't gonna stay there. I ran up the stairs, down the hall, and into my bedroom to see how my mother had arranged it. As I thought, she had replaced the old, torn curtains that were left here with shorter, light blue ones, my bed in the corner to the left of the door, my dresser right across from it with all my books in order from tallest to shortest on top, and all my stuffed animals piled nicely next to my closet. I had her buy me so many stuffed animals because they're fun to sleep on. I put my new book down next to the others, planning on reading it later. First I wanted to change out of the clothes I'd been wearing today and into a more comfy set of clothes. I grabbed a purple, long sleeved shirt with stars in the bottom right corner and a pair of capris and quickly changed, throwing my old dirty clothes into a pile at the end of the bed like I always do.

"Kaari! Come down here! We're going to be leaving soon to go to dinner with Rena and her parents!" Yay...

"Okay, be right there!" I looked over at the book I bought, contemplating whether to bring it or not. I decided not to, figuring my mom would tell me to talk instead of read. I'd have to wait until tonight to read it.

I hopped down the stairs, realizing that my mother had already changed into nicer clothes, and my dad not caring about such petty things. "Come on sweety, lets go," she grabbed her purse and exited the house, my dad following her. I sighed, turned off the lights, and closed the door behind me, not even bothering to lock it. No one seems to come by here anyway.

We didn't even drive to the restiraunt. My mom had us walk. Even though it's a small town, they still have roads and parking spots. We don't need to walk everywhere...

Rena and her parents were waiting for us in front of our destination. Rena didn't even bother to change. She was still in the white dress with the purple bow that she wore all day. "Hello Kaari!" I could see the pain in her face as she tried to resist attacting me in front of our parents.

"Hey."

The whole night was a bore. Our parents talked the whole time about nothing in particular. I sat quietly most of the time, playing with the buger and fries I ordered, trying to ignore everything that Rena said. My mom got mad at me, as I suspected, and told me to talk. She asked me about my old school and my old friends. I'm not sure what to tell her exactly. I didn't have many friends. I wanted to get home and start reading my book, but the dinner lasted the rest of the night.

By the time we got home, my parents had become best friends with Rena's parents and it was around 10 o'clock. My mom told me I had to go to school tomorrow and I like my sleep, so I decided to put off reading it for another day. I slipped into my pjs, hopped into bed, and closed my eyes. My thoughts were filled with my desire to go back to my old village as I drifted off to sleep.