Prologue

There was always something different about Nazomi Sohma the second cat zodiac. Not her hair or her eye color. She was about five foot four inches and she had long light brown wavy hair the reached to about her hips that she braided a lot of the time. She was in the middle with her bust size and she was slim. She was about one hundred and five pounds. Her blue eyes were deep and always showed her feelings. And her smile could lighten up a room. What really set her apart was the way she acted. She acted like Ayame but she knew when she had to stop unlike Ayame. It would be funny to Shigure and Hatori to watch Ayame and Nazomi skip down the hallway in school. But... one day... she changed completely...

Late afternoon it was the last day of school and Hatori and Nazomi had missed the car ride home. They walked along and it was silent. She had liked Hatori but was always too afraid to tell him. He was silent and she could feel the tension. Her blue eyes looked at the ground. When she looked up at Hatori he was looking right at her and she tripped over a rock. She felt herself fall forward and then an arm was around her. She squeezed her eyes shut and was so afraid she was going to transform, she opened her eyes and looked up at Hatori who had then same nervous and confused expression on his face as to why he didn't transform. They must have been expecting the same thing. "Um..." Nazomi started as she looked at Hatori. They talked about school and the simple things like what they liked. Her blue eyes never left him as she and he talked to each other. They had gotten home and went their separate ways. Akito had been eight at the time. You still had to obey what he wanted though. He was the head of the family. He had asked her to see him as soon as possible. She placed her books in her room at her house and then went to Akito's place. She sat in front of the young boy and waited for what he had to say. It was strange because Nazomi could feel that something was wrong when the boy went behind her. He was doing something but she didn't look. She felt a strong whip in her back. Her eye opened wide and she could feel every bit of pain suddenly like he was stabbing her. Her eyes watered and tears came from her eyes. They were silent tears. Why and how could a young child hurt her so? Blood began to leave her back and Akito began yelling at her. Some words she couldn't even hear because the pain was so much. Shigure and Hatori ran in and looked at Nazomi on the floor and stopped Akito from doing anything else. "You slut!" the eight year old yelled. It was strange hearing such a young child yell at her like he was her elder. Nazomi curled up into a ball on the floor. The hot tears were making her hair stick to her face. And the stinging gash on her back let out crimson blood that got into her hair. She felt herself get picked up. Akito still yelling something at her. "You'll never be anything! NEVER!" he yelled as Hatori held the young boy back. Shigure and Hatori saved her from anything else.

But... they had been too late... she changed... Nazomi stopped talking for awhile... She was ashamed of the scar on her back and what Akito had called her. The words would ring in her ears. She's now twenty-eight. She talks but not as much as before. She changed... so much from her upbeat self that is now in her past. She quiet and lives in Shigure's house. Nothing after that day was ever the same for her.