"What!? You snuck out again?!" Mutti screamed at me. Tears flowed down my face.

"Mutti, I-"

"Stop it! Stop it! I can't take it anymore! You're so dishonest and deceitful! A rat is what you are! A rat!" She cried again.

I broke down into tears again. My Mutti and I had been fighting like this ever since I started my new school. Whether I tell her I don't fit in, or I sneak out with my other friends when I'm supposed to be doing schoolwork, she always hates me for it, whatever I do. And I always lose because I'm weak.

My Dad burst into the room. "What's going on?" He yelled and both of us stumbled back.

"Nothing," Mutti told Dad, and turned to me again. "Sukaira, go to your room."

"But I-"

"Shut up, and go," she muttered through clenched teeth. I sobbed and ran to my basement room.

I heard voices from the upstairs and decided to eavesdrop because I knew she would say something nasty about me. What I heard was this:

Mutti: I just don't understand Sukaira. One minute I think she understands, but then she goes and does the opposite of what I mean, and she never feels any remorse.

Dad: She was crying, Mari.

Mutti: Yeah, because she was found out.

Dad: Haven't you ever thought you were a bit too hard on her?

Mutti: I thought she would make friends easily. But I guess I was wrong. She hasn't been doing well for a new school.

I didn't wand to listen anymore. I walked to my room and talked to myself through my sobs. "Can you believe she called me a rat!?" I screamed to my other side of me.

You are deceitful, Sukaira. Admit that. My other side, Kyokokoro, snapped at me.

"I'm just weak, is all." I sniffled.

Whatever. You can be strong, Saki. I know that, Kyoko consoled me.

"I'm sick of talking to myself. There are these things that people have in the Other Universe, Shugo Charas or something, but I don't have one."

Why don't we go to the Other Universe, then? I'm sure someone can tell you about them. Kyoko told me.

"Fine," I sighed.

There's something I haven't told you. I'm a witch. Well, half witch and a quarter pixie, if you care about the details. There's a place where full-bloods live, called the Other Universe, and I go there a lot, because I have the money. I earn it by being on the Council. There are two Councils, the Syrana and the Rekegan. I'm on the Syrana, the apparently "good" council. The Rekegan, however, is after my friend Ikumi, a vampire outlaw. That's why I'm on the Syrana, to keep them from going after Ikumi and me. (In case you were wondering, they go after anyone on the side of an outlaw. And the Rekegan makes up all these dumb laws, too. Like, "don't chew gum while putting on shoes" or "Don't flatulate on the train" or something stupid. I want to kill them for sending spies to look for Ikumi and me. Luckily when you're magic-blooded, you have your real appearance and your disguise. My real self has wavy long blonde hair and is super short. Ikumi has straight, long black hair and is six-foot-something, with very scary pale skin.

But anyway, I traveled to the Other Universe. As soon as I was there, I saw an elven girl walking around with a Shugo Chara and ran up to her. Her silver hair and midnight blue, glassy eyes made her seem so majestic. "Excuse me," I asked. "Where can I get a Shugo Chara?"

Her glassy eyes drilled holes in my face. "How should I know? Ask someone else." And that was it.

"I guess it's no use," I wavered, feeling tears sting my eyes.

Well, then, I guess we'll go home. Kyoko sighed. Sobbing, I made my way home.

Later that evening I cried some more. "I need some help! God, please give me something to make me stronger! I'm gonna die a wimp! I'm just a fraud in this world… help me…" and with that, I fell asleep.