Chapter One

Okami

"Kanda! Kanda, wake up or we will be late for school!" I called up to him from the bottom of the stairs. It was already a quarter to 8 and we had to be there at 8:30. This was normal; I should be used to it by now. I walked back into the kitchen and got mine and Kanda's bags ready. We were always running late on Fridays. As I got done with his lunch Kanda came down stairs looking half awake. He looked up at me and I came over, kissed the top of his head, and handed him his bag. We then headed for the door.

Haku was outside waiting for us. He greeted Kanda and got no answer as Kanda walked in front of us. I joined him on the sidewalk. He looked at me and smiled. "Same as usual I guess? He will brighten up as we walk to school." He told me and we started to follow Kanda. We were a strange group. Haku and Kanda looked like the brothers they were. Both had black hair and they had a slight build with muscles where they were needed. Kanda was a foot shorter then Haku, but if you put them together you could tell their relation.

I, on the other hand, was the outcast of the group. I had long blonde hair and was about in the middle when it came to the height thing. I had a lean build too but I also had more muscle then the girls in my class. If you put me with Kanda and Haku you would never know that I was their sister. And good thing too because we were only related by adoption anyway. So, everywhere we went together, eyes followed. Kanda got really annoyed by it and Haku just tried to ignore it.

We were about two blocks from Kanda's school when Kanda stopped dead in his tracks. We caught up to him and Haku looked forward to see the problem. I stepped in front of Kanda and got him to look at me. "What's wrong Kanda? Are you alright? Did I forget something?" I asked him. He looked down and away from me.

"No. it's nothing Okami, just forget it." He hugged my quickly and then ran past me and into the school gates.

I watch him until he turned the corner and was out of sight. I turned to Haku and I guess there was a worried look on my face. Haku put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed lightly. "Don't worry. He will tell us when he is ready. We just have to wait for him to choose to." He gave me a smile and kept walking.

Haku and I got to school just in time to make it to class. Haku was in the Senior class, two ahead of me. I was a Sophomore. Kanda was one year younger than me but he was two years behind me in school, making him a 7th grader in the Middle School four blocks away. We lived together in a four bedroom house about a mile from the school. Haku and Kanda's parents, my adoptive parents, died five years ago. We have been on our own ever since. I tutored and babysat to bring in money. I also taught piano once a week. Haku worked at a restaurant and on the docks sometimes. We got by and we had money to spear from a banking account that I had from my birth parents. Haku didn't like me to use it, but sometimes we needed to.

As I sat in my first hour class, I couldn't help but think about Kanda. He had looked like something was really bugging him this morning. I wonder how long it will last until he decides to talk about it. Then the teacher called us to attention and began the lesson. I tried to focus but the girls in front of me began to talk about something interesting.

"Did you hear the news?" one said.

"Ya! Two new transfer students and both of them guys! It is going to be great!" number two agreed.

"I wonder if they will be cute. Oh I hope so! We need a few new guys around here." One complained.

"I agree. The only really gorgeous guy is Haku right now." Two confided.

"I know." Two said. Then she took a quick look in my direction. I was no longer looking at them, just listening. "She lives with him. They are not even really related are they? I wonder what is really going on between the two of them."

I was a little shocked, but Haku and I had talked about this before. People were bound to ask questions about the relationship. It is true Haku and I did act more like a couple then we should. We were more than parents to Kanda and we acted like a family. I guess Haku and I could be counted as a couple. Though we really hadn't set it up that way. I focused more on the lesson after that. I didn't need to think on that at the moment.

Over in the Middle School: Kanda

We were running drills again. Great. Why can't the people who do get this stuff do something else instead of going over the same thing over and over again? I ran in line with the others around the track for our one lap warm up. I got done before the others who fell in after me. I was normally the first one. As we waited in line to do movement exercises, I felt a big hand clamp down on my shoulder and turn me around.

Man I wish I was not standing so close, this was not a pretty sight and it stunk too. Standing in front of me, breathing hard from the short run, was a big chubby kid in my class named Gus Grizzly. He was a big bully and no one really liked him. He didn't seem to like me very much either. As we stood there facing each other everybody took a couple of steps away from us. This guy may not be very fast or in shape, but man he could hit hard. No wonder his name was Grizzly.

"Hey there Kanda. You missed our little meeting after school yesterday. What's wrong, did your mommy want you home at a certain time?" Gus taunted me. Some of his friends stepped forward and made a circle around me.

This was going badly. I looked at him and raised my eye brow. "Are you stupid or something? My mother and father died a while ago dumb ass. And you and your little friends can step back, because you do something to me, I'll make it ten times worse for you. Got it?" I asked him taking a step forward.

Then the teacher came over to us. We all dispersed and started our movement stretches. Gus never got a chance to talk to me again. Well, not until he caught me leaving school.

Okami

The bell rang for the last class to end and everyone was out the door in seconds ready to start the weekend. I walked down the stairs and went to the front of the school. Haku was waiting for me at the front gate. "Hey I have to go to work tonight, but I'll be home in time for dinner. Will you and Kanda be ok without me today?" he asked me as I came to his side.

"Ya we will be fine. You go and work and don't worry dinner will be ready when you get home." I told him with a smile. He was always so worried about us. Haku handed me his backpack, leaned over and kissed my cheek, before running down the sidewalk.

I stood there watching as he disappeared around a corner. Then I turned to see a group of girls, along with the two from my class, glaring at me. I turned and made a quick getaway down the sidewalk in the other direction, toward Kanda's school. I got to the front gate and saw that it was disserted. Kanda usually waited for me and Haku. Where was he?

I looked around and I couldn't see him. So, I took off for home. I was very quick and the mile only took me about two minutes. As I rounded the corner of the stone wall that surrounded our house I stopped dead in my tracks. Kanda was lying on the ground and he didn't look good. I ran over to him and knelt beside him, throwing mine and Haku's bags on the ground.

"Kanda, Kanda can you hear me? Say something! What happened?" I turned him over gently and set his head on my knees. I looked at his face and saw a black eye forming and a few more cuts and bruises all over. Other than that he looked alright. He was covered in dirt and his head was bleeding from what looked like a gash on his forehead. I helped him stand up and we walked into the house with his arm around my shoulder and him leaning on me completely.

I got him to the foot of the stair and carried him up to his bedroom. I set him down on his bed and propped his feet up. I went into the bathroom and got the first-aid kit. I took care of his head first. Cleaned the cut, and put some medicine on it, then wrapped it up. Then I helped him sit up and undid his shirt. There where bruises all over him. I was a little worried when I saw the big one by his ribs. I took care not to touch it.

After I got everything I could cleaned up and patched up, I went down stairs and called the doctor. In about ten minutes a doctor was on the door step. He went upstairs with me and looked at Kanda. "There seems to be a lot of bruising, but nothing is broken. His wrist is sprained and he doesn't need to get up for a few days with that cut on his head. I will prescribe a painkiller and some antibiotics for him. He should be better in a few days. Keep his wrist in a wrap for about two weeks." I thanked him and he left.

I walked over and sat next to Kanda on his bed. Kanda's eyes were closed and his breathing was even. "He is gone. Now open your eyes and look at me." I told him.

Kanda's eyes opened and he looked up at me. He tried to turn away but I wouldn't let him, as I gently put one hand on the side of his face and turned it back to me. "Kanda what happened? Who did this?" I asked him.

Kanda looked down then back up before answering. "It was an accident. I fell and hit a wall. No big deal." He looked away from me again.

He was lying. He could never look me in the eyes when he lied, but he could with other people, even Haku couldn't tell. I sighed. "Kanda I want to know what happened. This time tell me the truth. I can't help unless I know what the problem is, and it seems to be a big one. Is it someone from your class or a bigger student maybe?"

Kanda looked at me and this time he sighed. "His name is Gus Grizzly. He is in my class and he's a bully. No one really likes him; I'm just the only one who will say it to his face." Kanda looked a little indifferent when he said this and I smiled. He was always standing up to people.

"Ok I'll tell you what. I will go in and see the principle about this. I don't want you getting hurt anymore." I told him. Kanda was ready to protest and I raised my hand to silence him. "I will keep you out of it. We don't really look alike so he will never know that we are siblings." I gave him a conspiratorial wink.

Kanda smiled at me, which was rare for him. "Thanks Okami you're the best."

I smiled back and gently kissed his head. "I'll go make dinner. We will have your favorite; we will eat up here and watch movies tonight."

I walked down stairs and started to get dinner ready. Kanda's favorite was chicken casserole so it should be done by the time Haku came home. Two hours later the front door opened and closed. Haku walked into the kitchen and took a deep breath. "Mmmmm what smells good?" he ask walking over to the oven.

I stood up and closed the oven setting the casserole on top. "Kanda got into a fight today at school." I turned to Haku and he looked at me waiting. "A boy in his class has been being a bully and Kanda stood up to him. Kanda has bruising all over his chest and stomach. His wrist is sprained and he has a big cut across his forehead. He will be in a wrap for two weeks and he will need to be excused from school for about two days." I looked at him to gage his reaction. As I did I felt tears running down my cheeks.

Haku came over and hugged me. I stopped crying and pushed away from him. "Well then we will just have to fix this problem won't we? I'll talk to the principle tomorrow." I then explained my plan to him and we decided it would be better for me to say something. We got the rest of dinner ready then we went upstairs to eat with Kanda.

The next day before school, I went to the middle school and had a meeting with the principle. I told him I had seen one of the students, Gus, beating up on others in the student body with the help of some other boys. He told me he would deal with it immediately and apologized for the inconvenience. I thanked him, then went to my school and explained to my principle that I had to take care of Kanda until he was better. The principle excused me from all classes and I had to make up the work while I was gone.

I spent my day with Kanda and we watched movies, played games, and just talked. It was a lot more than what we normally do. Kanda worked on his homework and I did the chores and cleaning. I worked at babysitting at the house and I still did my piano lessons. After that was all done I did my own work. Haku came home from school and we would make dinner than eat in Kanda's room.

After the two days were up Kanda and I both went back to school. I had all of my work completed and I hadn't missed anything big. When the three of us walked home that day, Kanda told me and Haku that Gus was sent to another school.

We enjoyed a nice dinner at home that night and Kanda went to bed a little bit early. Haku and I were cleaning up a little when the phone rang. I walked over and answered. "Hello this is the Yu residence."

"Is Okami Yu at home?" a voice asked me.

I recognized it immediately. "This is she. What can I do for you Principle?"

"Oh Okami I would like to ask you and your brother Haku to do me a little favor for this week. You see, we are getting two new students and I couldn't help but notice that their schedules match yours and Haku's. I was wondering if you would be up to the task of showing them around and helping them out this week." He asked me.

I looked at Haku for a moment. "Please hold on for a minute." I put the phone to my shoulder, covering the receiver. "The principle wants to know if we would mind taking the two new students around school with us. Apparently, their schedules match ours perfectly." I watched as Haku thought for a moment and then, shrugged his shoulders before nodding his head. I smiled and returned to the phone. "We would be glad to take them around." I told the principle.

"Oh wonderful thank you both for doing this. I will make it up to you both. See you one Monday then." He hung up. I put the phone away, looked at Haku, and shrugged.

At the High School, Principal's office:

"It is all set. Haku and Okami will be you guides in school starting Monday." The principle told the three men sitting in front of his desk.

The man in the middle smiled. "Good, very good." He looked at the man on his left. "You know what to do."