Part 1

A Caged Bird

Hundreds of years ago, animals that today represent the Chinese Zodiac gathered for a banquet in honour of their God. Everyone was there, the rat, the ox, the boar, the snake, the dog, the sheep, the monkey, the horse, the tiger, the rabbit, the dragon, and the rooster. It was a fabulous night, full of laughter and joy. Everyone was there except for the cat… Unfortunately the rat decided to play a cruel trick on the cat and told him that the banquet wasn't until the day after. The poor cat slept right through the event and thus was left out of the Zodiac. This haunted the cat through out his whole left and took it out on the other members. Since then the vengeful spirits of the Zodiac have possessed the members of the Sohma family. To forever be cursed.

No one knew however about the poor canary, the God was a selfish being and did not want any of the others knowing about the bird. He wanted her all to himself. Paranoid that the others would steal her away he refused to let the bird come to the banquet. So lonely and very upset she circled the banquet over and over again singing at the top of her lungs, hoping that someone, anyone would hear her. Today the Canary has possessed a girl named Aimi, and to this day she has no clue about the other members of the Zodiac. She is trapped, confined to the God's room never to leave.

Aimi Sohma sat with her back flat against the wall. Her fingers were tracing the outlines of the wooden panels. Her strawberry blond hair framed her face as she glanced up at the ceiling. 57 tiles, she had counted them many times. There was never anything to do here. Akito, the God of the Sohma family, was always too sick and Aimi was not allowed outside. She would never dare try and escape, it would cause too much trouble. It was too dangerous. Akito has taught her this, taught her to stay away from men, taught her to stay inside and stay safe. There was a window open across the room; Aimi was automatically drawn towards it. She crossed the room quietly and placed her hands on the window sill.

Slowly she pushed her hands out the window, into the glowing sunlight; she felt the warmth on them. Warmth she yearned for, something she dreamed about running through but, no. Aimi was not allowed out there, never. Sighing she withdrew her hands and shut the window with a snap. She looked through the window and placed her cheek on the cold glass. Akito was her guardian and Aimi loved her, she did. Yet sometimes she dreamed of life without her. Without restrictions a world where she could be free outside these walls. Those are only on her weak days, the days where Akito abuses her, only then do those awful thoughts flood her mind.

Aimi walked away from the window and sat in the corner, her corner. She didn't feel very well; a fever was threatening to take over her. It was hard to live with Akito and not feel sick from time to time. The poor god was cursed with so many aliments and it spread, like wildfire to Aimi, then and only then is she allowed to see a male. That had only happened once when she was little. By now the memory was gone and impossible to retrieve, like water in your hands; it just slips through your fingers. She smacked her head on the wall and she tried once again hopelessly to remember the doctor's face. It was no use; his dark eyes were the only things that stood out in the cloud that was his face in her mind.

Her eyes traveled across the room lingering on Akito's bed; there was only one bed in the room even though Aimi lived here as well. It was the god's idea to keep it hidden until night time to help keep Aimi a secret. Finally she saw the closet, countless times she was ordered to hide in the darkness of the closet until her company left. Every once and awhile when Aimi gets up enough nerve she would slowly open the closet. Only to get a glimpse of the person, by doing this she was able to get a fair understanding of the world outside. The name Tohru comes up a lot, Akito does not like this girl one bit. Also a man named Shigure visits often, so often that Aimi was seen once for a second before she got in the closet. Luckily Shigure didn't ask any questions…

She glanced back out the window searching for some sign of life. Once days ago she saw a boy walk by, it gave her such a jolt she pulled the blinds and sat in her corner but, she had already seen him. His hair was very unusual, a ghostly white on top and dark black roots underneath. His dark eyes sparkled in the sunlight… He seemed so bored, so unaffected by everything. For some reason Aimi felt an attraction towards this boy, it was hard to explain but, soon Aimi stopped hiding when she saw him. Instead she waited by the window just to get a glance of the strange boy. The canary couldn't find out why either. What was it about him?

Aimi brushed a piece of her blonde hair off her shoulders before staring at the ceiling once again. She needed Akito, without her it was boring. So very boring. She had no clue where she was. That was odd usually she tells Aimi when she's about to leave. Sometimes she thinks Akito mentions where's she going just to make her jealous but, again those were only on her weak days.

Aimi pushed herself to her feet. She was tired of sitting it was seizing up her muscles, her legs were never very strong, and she barely uses them and has little room for exercise. Luckily she doesn't eat much even though she was a growing adolescence. She used little energy during the day and as such didn't need the nutrition. She placed her hands on the window and saw to her shock the boy she was just thinking about. He was sitting under the cherry blossom tree. He looked surreal; his head leaned against the tree trunk and his eyes half closed. He looked like he was day dreaming. Aimi felt her face grow warm it was a strange feeling she was almost embarrassed to be watching him.

Suddenly he glanced up and caught her eye; his dull black eyes were filled with a gentle confusion. It was like he was interested but, didn't really care about the girl in the room. Aimi would usually run and hide in her closet like she has countless times before but, she didn't want to. She wanted to communicate with him, talk to him. How? How could she say hello? It wasn't as easy as opening your mouth and uttering those simple sounds; no this was much more difficult. She needed courage to talk to him, another human being besides Akito.

Akito! Akito would never allow this, not only was she watching a male she was actually thinking of talking to him. She shook her head a few times, no bad idea. Very bad. The god would be very upset; Aimi would never be able to handle her wrath. Despite her better judgment, Aimi opened the window slowly, her hands shaking, this was the strangest thing. She was scared out of her mind, how could a boy she likes so much strike so much fear into her. Maybe this was love? She loves Akito but, she also fears her above all else. She likes this boy but, fears him. Fears what he is and what he stands for; rebellion and freedom.

"W-Who're are... you?" Aimi's voice was quiet and strangely distant. It sounded strange to hear it somewhere besides her own head. It took her a few moments to figure this sentence out and yet it still sounded awkward. Why was it so hard talking to him? She kept her gaze on him, she was very embarrassed but, she couldn't look away from his eyes. This was the closest she has ever been to a male besides the doctor. The boy cautiously got to his feet. It took him only a few strides to arrive at the window. He looked up with her with a mixture of concern and blankness.

"I'm Hatsuharu, who're you? What are you doing in Akito's room? No one goes in there, unless of course they're in trouble… Are you in trouble?" This boy, Hatsuharu asked. All instincts told her to shut the window and run but, she couldn't bring herself to do that, she had already gotten this far. She glanced at the door to the room looking for a shadow of someone's feet or the sound of a voice. Nothing, wherever Akito was she was nowhere close. Hopefully. The thought of Akito catching her was frightening, she would be punished, the boy, Haru would be punished as well.

"Aimi, my name…is Aimi Soma." The canary told him in her quiet voice. She had never introduced herself before either. It was strange the normal ordinary everyday occurrences that everyone has were completely foreign to Aimi. She felt odd her head out the window speaking to this boy, almost like Romeo and Juliet or something else romantic. Yes, poor Aimi was a fool for the 'lovey dovey' stuff. It may seem lame but, to Aimi it was her only source of entertainment; to come up with outrageous scenarios in her head. Daydreams were all she had.

"I'm not in trouble…" Aimi hesitated; she was scared to tell him why she was there. She had already broken so many rules today, did she dare break anymore? Would it be pushing it over the edge? She gripped the window's edge as her mind debated. She bit her lip and glanced back at the door once again making sure no one would walk in.

"I… I'm not… I live… here." Aimi said slowly. She almost winced as the words passed her lips. Akito would be angry, very, very, angry. Hopefully she will never find out. Aimi felt herself relax; she had finally told someone what was going on in her life even though it wasn't much. It was more than she's ever shared. She felt an enormous pressure lift off her shoulders. The secret was out. The only question was; how far would it spread? "Please! You mustn't tell anyone! It's a … secret!"

"Sohma? In Akito's room? Secret?" Haru rambled a little. Obviously his mind was full of questions; Aimi didn't quite understand why it was such a big deal. What was this boy's relationship with Akito? A moment passed before he smiled slightly. "Secret's safe with me."

Haru held out his pinkie and Aimi automatically backed up half a step. This was one of the few normal customs she was familiar with. Her father taught her when she was just a little girl. She had caught him smoking when her mother had specifically told him not to and he held out his pinkie. He told her not to tell her mom. She didn't know what to do so he explained; 'you link you little finger with mine, this means you have to keep you're promise not to tell!' That was years ago and with her father, now a boy, a male was asking her to do the same. She knew there was nothing wrong with it, it was an innocent gesture. Akito's words were ringing through her head.

'Never come in contact with a man, they'll see you for what you really are.'

Despite all this, Aimi knew it would be rude and this boy wouldn't understand if she refused. So, slowly she outstretched her hand and linked her tiniest finger with his. This was the first time in a long time she ever made contact with another human. Aimi was stiff and rigid; she didn't waste time retracting her arm after the connection was made. She stared at her hand; she knew that from this point on her life was going to be better. Or she hoped, she hoped that the boy wouldn't be scared away by her, she was after all very strange.

"Thank you, please be careful around here, Akito-sama has a very bad temper." She could feel it, her voice was becoming stronger and her sentences more fluent. Just talking to him was rebuilding her strength. She felt a smile appear on her lips, she smiled so warmly at him. Something she had never done before. "I wish you could stay longer, but, I have no clue when Akito-sama will return. It would be safer, if you… left."

"I suppose so." Haru said with an air of carelessness. He took a step back before smiling slightly. "I'll return tomorrow."

Aimi felt a pain in her heart as she watched Haru walk away. It was the first time she had made any real contact with any male human being. He said he would return tomorrow. Aimi had no choice but, to trust him. Hopefully he would be smart about it and come at a time that Akito was out… Would Akito even be leaving tomorrow? Filled with worry she closed the window and returned to her little corner. Just in time too, not three seconds later Akito opened the door.