"Kindra! Kindra! Wait!" The young blonde girl panted running to catch up with her younger sister.

Kindra turned her head and laughed at her older sister, "I'm gonna beat you, Sahara!"

Sahara watched Kindra's long brown hair bounce off towards the shrine just down the hill from where their house was. She stopped short of breath and turned to her left to watch the sunrise far to the East. It was the coming of age ceremony for her oldest sister, Rima, who had just turned sixteen yesterday. From now on, Rima has the chance to marry any suitor she deems worthy. Or any man may choose her. Although, Sahara doubted either would happen anytime soon. All three of Sahara's sisters were beautiful with their long black or brown hair, big brown eyes, and soft skin. Rima was especially beautiful though. She had the thickest raven black hair anyone had ever seen. Her personality even matched. She was probably the nicest person anyone had ever met, but she never let anyone, except her sisters, get close to her.

It wasn't just Rima though. Sahara's whole family was a bit more closed off than the other families that lived in the village down the hill from their house. They weren't bad people or anything. At least that's what Sahara kept telling herself, but other twelve-year-old kids had other opinions about that. They told stories about demons terrorizing villages and some told of horrifying stories where demons would live in villages disguised as humans and at night would kill everyone in the village and…

"Sahara! If you are just gonna stand there then come help me!"

She slowly turned to the male voice that called down to her from the house and locked blue eyes to green. Her older brother stood holding two baskets of food in each hand. He smiled down at her a playful gleam in his eyes strands of his brown hair swayed lightly in the breeze. He was the oldest of the siblings and the most attractive man in the village. If only his eyes weren't green.

"Come here! I can't carry all six of these baskets by myself in one trip now, can I?" Her blue eyes slid down to his feet where two more baskets, not as full as the first four sat.

"Okay!" She exclaimed cheerfully running back up to grab the remaining two, one in each hand. "Um, Touya, where is father?"

"He has already gone to the shrine while you girls were getting ready. Careful! Don't trip on that new kimono now."

"I won't." Came her reply after she recovered from almost tripping.

The walk didn't seem as long as it normally did when she would make the journey alone to the shrine. She adored her brother. His laugh and smile always warmed her heart. If he wasn't her sibling he would probably be the one she would dream of marrying. He had a big heart and a carefree spirit like their father, but their father had simmered down a lot after the murder of their mother.

"Sahara?"

"What?"

His green eyes looked down at her for a moment, a serious sad look in his eye, but he turned to look forward again as they reached the back gate of the shrine.

"Never mind. Lets have a good day and enjoy the celebration." He smiled again. A smile Sahara didn't like because it was a false smile that said "I have a lot on my mind, but I'm gonna pretend to be happy for you". It was all she could do but nod in agreement watching his face, wondering what he could be thinking.

The ceremony was beautiful! Everyone was dressed in beautiful silk kimonos and all the girls and women had pretty butterfly and flower decorations all done up in their hair. Rima was completely done up in make up and her long thick hair was in buns at the top of her head with flowery ornaments done up in and around them. Her blue kimono decorated with sakura petals fitted to her curvy body perfectly. Her smile glowed as she greeted everyone at the feast that proceeded after the ceremony.

Sahara sat with her second older sister, Gwen, underneath a tree looking out at all the people who were gathering to eat. Gwen was brushing Sahara's long blonde hair to braid it into two separate braids that would be pinned up in a butterfly clip at the back of Sahara's head.

"What did you think of the feast, Sahara?"

"I liked all the foods! Although I have to say, the food you, father, and Touya made us was the best!" Sahara smiled. Normally men weren't allowed to help in preparing or making food, but because Gwen was the only woman really old enough to make anything father and Touya wanted to make the job a little easier.

"That's good I'm glad. " Gwen carefully clipped the green butterfly in place before standing to observe her work being careful not to ruin her orange kimono. "There! All done!"

Sahara jumped up and hugged her sister gratefully. "Thank you, Gwen!" She smiled into her sister's brown eyes who returned it with a smile of her own, but then they grew a bit solemn.

Sahara was starting to get used to these looks every time a member of her family made eye contact with her their eyes would show some sign of pity. Sahara remembered in her earlier years that it used to not be the case with the exception of her mother who couldn't bear to look at her own daughter. Sahara was five when her mother died and she soon learned after that why her mother couldn't bear to look at her or care for her the way Touya, Rima, Gwen, and her father did.

It was a summer day when the sun was high in the sky just after her seventh birthday. She wanted to play with Gwen and Rima who were playing with some of the neighbor girls. They allowed her, but Sahara could sense some sort of tension and fear in the two neighbor girls that were comfortable and content with her sisters. The topic of choice switched from favorite foods to boys the almost teenagers liked. Sahara began playing with sticks and stones that were one the grassy ground they sat on listening to the conversation thinking it better not to join because she was supposed to be too young to like boys, but there was one in particular that she had her eyes on.

"Rima! Don't say that! I think Sato is very attractive!" Gwen exclaimed throwing a dandelion in her sister's face playfully.

"I agree with Gwen." One of the brown haired girls chimed in. "But I like Keiji. He will definitely be the one I marry!" She laughed and Sahara tensed. "My brother already said that he would arrange it for me with Keiji parent's so that when my coming of age ceremony comes in a few years he will be engaged to me."

"But Keiji wants to make his own choice in women! He doesn't want to be chosen by just anyone!" Sahara found herself saying before she could stop herself.

The second girl suddenly turned on the her and glared deep into her blue eyes, "What do you know? You probably will never mate with any of the boys here, especially Keiji! You are weird!"

"That's not very nice! Don't treat my little sister like that!" Rima scolded the younger girl.

"Its true!" The first girl argued. "Her hair color is different and look at her eyes! They are as blue as the ocean! Who would marry someone like her?"

"She has arms, legs, hands, feet, face, and feelings just like you and the rest of the women in the village. C'mon you two lets go." Rima stood up grabbed both of her sister's hand and dragged them off towards home.

Sahara watched Gwen talk to Rima. She was shocked about what just happened between the three girls almost as much as Sahara was about it herself. She felt like her world just got dark and lonely. Everything thing seemed so different like a veil had just been lifted from her eyes and everything seemed to hit her at once. Her mother had nothing to do with her because she was different. Her hair was yellow while everyone else's hair was brown or black. Her eyes were different, just like Touya, who just went through the coming of age ceremony a few days before and no woman made an attempt at making it known he was wanted as a husband. Was she doomed? Bound to wonder the earth with nothing going for her? From that day on, Sahara was more conscious of the looks and whispers the villagers made towards her.

"Sahara?" Touya strolled up a rice ball in his hand.

"Is that for me?" She gladly took the ball from her brother and gulped it up. "Yummy! Thank you!"

He nodded turning to Gwen, "We should probably start heading back home. The villagers are starting to get seriously drunk and father doesn't want to stick around."

Gwen nodded taking Sahara's hand to head home. "What about Rima and Kindra?"

"Already headed that way."

The three siblings made their way home only to find there was a visitor at their door.