Prologue
It was a balmy autumn morning as Mashiro Ichijo walked tiredly to the train station, preparing for countless birthday wishes at school. She was turning sixteen, one step closer to an adult. With lacrosse stick in hand and her skirt swaying in the wind, she began thinking about herself; her flaws. Will I ever make my own decisions? I'm growing older by the day, but why do I still feel so young and vulnerable? Engulfed by her daydreams, she accidently bumped into a tall boy about her age, dropping her wallet. He had dark and brooding eyes that hid behind a pair of lenses. His dark hair, almost black, was being tousled by the breeze.
Smiling, the boy whispered with a smooth voice, "Miss, you dropped your wallet. You should be a little more careful next time."
"O-oh, thank you," Mashiro replied, mesmerized by his image. "I-I-I had a lot of money in there; thank goodness I didn't lose it!" Laughing, they both walked into train together, making small talk.
"What school do you attend?"
"Oh, I'm a transfer student. I used to live down by the countryside, so this is my first experience here in the city. I'm going to Kyoto Preparatory near the river," the boy replied.
"I'm going there now, as well! If you want, I can show you around the school. It's an amazing campus, with excellent academics, wonderful people and teachers. They have some snobby students, but you'll learn to ignore them. Oh, and the area around it is just gorgeous!"
Suddenly, Mashiro's eyes glanced down at the boy's hands. "Hey, what is that?" She grabbed his wrist, revealing a scar almost identical to hers. Ever since she was born, the mysterious crescent shaped scar had always been there—right between her thumb and forefinger.
"That's funny, we have the same scar. Almost in the same position." she exclaimed.
"Oh, that. I've had it since I was a baby. My mother said that it was rare that such a deep scar would be there at birth. I guess we're both special," the boy returned with a smile.
"Hah, we were probably siblings in a past life or something." Mashiro laughed. "Oh, I never asked you your name! So impolite of me."
Shaking his head with a smile, the boy replied: "My name is Sou Mizuhashi, nice to meet you."
Upon hearing those words, Mashiro abruptly turned pale, a shocked expression on her face. She felt a blinding pain shoot up from her hand and fill up in her whole body. That name, so familiar yet so different. Where have I heard it before? Her whole body was shivering in the pain until she finally fell unconscious in this Sou Mizuhashi's arms.