Author's note: okay so there are a few things I should clear up, which probably weren't clear in the first chapter. Firstly, some of you may have noticed that I said epilogue instead of prologue. That WASN'T a mistake. The first chapter was sort of the beginning of the actual epilogue so it was sorta like a view into the future of the story. Secondly, this is a ShizNat fanfic. Miyu and Natsuki are just really good friends and they're both competing for our one only favourite (or at least my one and only) Shizuru Fujino. The characters in this story are quite OOC with some familiar odds and ends I guess. Anyway here's a new chapter.

Chapter One

Shizuru Fujino had qualified as a teacher at the only school in the Fuuka village. She'd qualified at the top of her class and was on her way in a cab to the small village. On one hand Shizuru was happy. She felt like a millionaire with nothing to spend her money on. On the other hand, she was scared, terrified even.

She was a HiME, the lowest group of beings in the country. They were hated. There was no reason for their hatred, but the feelings against them were justified because they were a lesser race which was never given a chance. The Fuuka village was infamous for its hatred for the HiMEs and the chieftesses and royalty in the village were infamous for the number HiMEs they kept as slaves. They were distinguished by their pale skin, but other than that they were no different from normal people.

Shizuru sighed. She'd never know the reason for their hatred but with her extreme willpower she'd take on anything that came her way, in the same way that she had in her school. She'd become immune to the taunting and spitting and the hair pulling. Her fellow learners as well as her teachers could simply not understand why she was so smart and strong. No HiME had even dared go to school. In truth, they wouldn't so simply be accepted but Shizuru had a different story. She was orphaned at birth. According to her foster mother, who was a so-called normal person, the people wouldn't even touch her mother's dead body. They wouldn't even clean her body for her burial. Her foster mother had become sick and gone off in a rage that had shaken the hospital. She'd taken Shizuru in as a social experiment to see what would happen if you put an uncivilised HiME in a "perfect" society. The result was of course the strong and quiet, masked Shizuru Fujino.

She was so lost in thought, she didn't notice the car entering the village with its derelict roads and scattered buildings. The car stopped and the action snapped her out of her daydream. The terror half of her sprung into sudden action as the driver opened her door with a smile.

"Mistress," the driver said. "We've arrived."

She got out after a moment and stood like a statue outside the restaurant they stood next to. She was hungry but she didn't have the courage to step inside the shop.

"Please Mistress. There's no need to be scared of the world," the driver said, noticing the Shizuru's hesitation. "I'll get you something to eat."

Shizuru was taken aback by her kindness. Perhaps she didn't know Shizuru was HiME.

That was one reason. The other was that teachers in the village were very important people. The driver walked in, taking her by the hand. She stared at the hand enveloped around hers and the mask she always had disappeared for an instant.

They ate in silence. Suddenly it seemed as though the atmosphere in the room changed. Shizuru couldn't place the changed. The driver's head lifted quickly and brightened up at the presence of someone new in the court. Shizuru looked around quickly. A beautiful woman in bold clothing entered the room. Her skirt was short and tight, her legs were beautiful.

"Mistress Nao!" the woman almost yelled. "The Mistress is the sister of the future chief of this village, Master Miyu," he said quickly to Shizuru.

To Shizuru's surprise the woman walked right up to their table, sat down and in a long exaggerated movement she flipped out a cigarette and lit it. She gave the driver a smile but turned all her attention to Shizuru.

"You must be the new teacher at Fuuka," she said, lifting her eyebrow slightly with a dazzling smile. The driver blushed, but Shizuru hid easily behind her mask and nodded slightly. Her smile broadened.

"I'm Mistress Nao. I'm a teacher at the school too. And you are Shizuru Fujino." Nao said. Shizuru nodded. Her driver excused himself from the table, now satisfied that Shizuru had someone to help her with everything else she needed help with. Nao seemed to examine Shizuru under her scrutinising gaze. Nao didn't know why but she liked the brunette instantly. She was not extremely beautiful, not like Nao, but her eyes were magnificent. Big, round and attentive red orbs stared back at her. Shizuru's eyebrow only twitched slightly to show her discomfort.

"I'm sorry to stare at you like I do," she said. "I just can't place you. Tell me, what are you? Where are you from?" Nao said.

Nao's mind had just skipped the possibility that Shizuru might be a HiME. They weren't smart enough to be teachers so it wasn't possible. Shizuru cleared up her doubts.

"I am a HiME," she said softly without hesitation. Nao gasped loudly, causing a lot of people to turn their heads to their table.

"You mustn't say that so loud," she said, almost dropping her cigarette. "How is that possible?"

"I'm not ashamed. And it is possible. I assure you Mistress Nao," Shizuru said smiling. Nao's liking for the woman shot up a few more notches. She couldn't get enough of her wilful attitude. She sat back in her chair and laughed briefly.

"You're an extraordinary person, Shizuru Fujino. You can tell the world you are HiME, because you're so extraordinary," she said, her attitude suddenly switching poles. There was a moment of silence.

"We have to go," Nao said finally. "I'll take you Natsuki Kuga. She'll help us get settled and find you a place to stay."

As Nao stood up her smile brightened painfully and her body quivered lightly at her own mention of Natsuki. She was in love with the blue haired beauty. She'd been in love since before she existed in the world.

And Natsuki was a restless, so Nao would throw herself in Natsuki's path at any given chance. It was the same with almost every other woman in the village. And since Natsuki was so restless, she could do nothing but make love to women who threw themselves at her. Though, only Nao knew and understood that Natsuki cut her heart out and hid it somewhere during every affair. That was the reason why she was so in love. She wanted to find Natsuki's heart and keep it for herself.

She was the second most powerful woman in the village after Miyu, but even Miyu wasn't as desired as the blunette, because during her affairs Natsuki's bloodstream ran and boiled at twice the speed as any other person. That is what penetrated her women, intoxicated them.

Nao climbed into a car, her own, and gestured for Shizuru to sit next to her. Shizuru couldn't get used to the fact that Nao owned her own car and driver.

"To Natsuki," she said with excitement and the driver nodded.

Shizuru followed Nao into a beautiful tall house. They walked into a room with lots of comfy looking chairs, one of them in which a tall midnight haired goddess sat.

"Natsuki, a new teacher has arrived. She's looking for somewhere to stay. Is there anything available?" she asked trying not to explode in Natsuki's presence.

Natsuki lifted her head slowly. She couldn't stand Nao. There were too many distractions. Nao was too beautiful, her skirts were too tight and too short. It made Natsuki's blood begin to boil again and she didn't even acknowledge Shizuru's presence in the room. She didn't even look at the supposed new teacher.

"You're too late," she said harshly. Her voice was low and husky and sent vibrations through Nao's body. "There's nothing available. It's not my problem."

She bowed her head again in her seat. Shizuru had noticed a stormy thunder cloud Natsuki's beautiful eyes as she spoke to Nao. There was nothing to see. The cloud blocked everything.

Nao smiled maliciously.

"Let's go Shizuru. Miyu would help us on the spot. She has the kindness of a God. Not like that pig," she said looking Natsuki. At the mention of Miyu, Natsuki's mood suddenly changed. She resisted the urge to grab Nao and yell at her for calling her a pig and comparing her to Miyu. Her mood was suddenly calm and soothing as she hurried after them.

"Actually I think an old library was cleared a few days ago, and there's a good space there," she said, still not really noticing Shizuru. "I'll help you get settled in."

Nao smiled at her success.

"I'll check on you soon," she said. Shizuru was about to protest on going alone with the intimidating Natsuki, but Nao had already disappeared.

"Come," Natsuki said still refusing to acknowledge the nervous smaller woman. She followed her outside.

"Is that all the luggage you have?" Natsuki asked without looking at Shizuru. She'd noticed the suitcase when Shizuru had entered her house.

"Yes," Shizuru said softly. Natsuki's head lifted slightly at the sound of Shizuru's voice. She didn't know why she suddenly stopped. She shook her head to shake it off.

"Fine. We'll take my bike then."

Shizuru looked around furiously. Bike? What bike? She then saw a dirty blue and black Ducati parked in front of the house and wondered why she hadn't noticed it on the way in. Natsuki took the case in her hands without as much as a glance at her and secured it on the back of her bike and then mounted the bike.

"Are you coming?" Natsuki asked sarcastically. Shizuru nodded and hesitantly climbed on behind Natsuki.

"Hold on to me," she said. Shizuru loosely snaked her arms around the bluenette's waist, afraid of annoying Natsuki if she held on too tight. The truth was, Shizuru was afraid of the machine. Natsuki turned on the ignition and the bike jerked to life, surprising Shizuru into tightening her grip around the bluenette's waist considerably. Against her will, Natsuki's mouth curved into the smallest smile and she drove off.

Fuuka was a larger and more important village than most in the country. It took Natsuki about twenty minutes to get to the vacant library. On the way she scared and hooted at passers-by. She could do it because she was the daughter of the second most powerful chief in the village. These actions gave her happy satisfaction.

She pushed open the door with Shizuru's case in hand and set it down just inside. Shizuru took in the long dusty room. It was a good room, but there was only a table and two wooden chairs in it. Her eye caught a large spider scuttling across the width and crawl under the table, and she almost jumped up in surprise. There was no bed and it was too late to get one from the village. Shizuru wondered if the scorpion could crawl up the table. Natsuki walked to the table and wrapped her fingers around the edges.

"Please don't move the table," she pleaded softly.

Natsuki froze in her action. "Why?" she asked.

"I'm afraid of spiders," Shizuru said. Natsuki turned around.

"I knew you would say that," she said as if she were talking to a friend she'd known for a long time and knew and accepted all their faults and flaws. This was all too strange for Natsuki. A moment ago she was cold and ignorant of the other woman's presence and by some unexpected magic she had a new face. The storm in her emerald eyes was replaced by the most dazzling rainbow. And with her new eyes she saw the most beautiful woman in the world through the most beautiful crimson pools.

Shizuru, who had until that moment been unaware of any feeling, felt something in her chest go "bang". Her mouth silently shaped the word "oh" as she raised her hand to her chest towards her heart.

Natsuki looked away but when she looked back into Shizuru's eyes there was pain and question in her eyes. She had a new feeling, something big and out of her control and Natsuki didn't like it. She controlled everything in her life. She was the master of her own kingdom. She bowed her head, trying to withdraw herself and turned for the door. The spider scuttled out from underneath the table and Natsuki crushed it under her boot.

"I'll get you a bed," Natsuki said without looking at Shizuru and walked out.

Shizuru smiled, and even laughed a little. She felt ashamed for Natsuki, master of a kingdom, for fetching her a bed.

"But I'm not that important," she whispered after her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

That night, Natsuki walked alone in the fields of flowers surrounding the village. Fuuka was a beautiful village, hidden from the rest of the world. The old crumbling buildings and endless flower fields were just the cover of the book that was the people. They were an old people that the world had tried to modernise, but in this tiny corner of the world there were still things like honour and love was still fought for by the tip of a blade. Tradition was a hard habit to break in Fuuka.

As she walked she sighed. She was supposed to have an appointment with one of her girlfriends but ended up walking right past her house into the outskirts. She dropped into the red and blue sea and drowned in her thoughts. What did they call it? Love? Natsuki had never thought much about it. She loved Nao maybe.

No, Nao just made her restless by the way she wore her skirts and moved her thighs. With Nao, it was just a matter of her bloodstream. But Natsuki hadn't been aware of this new woman until she spoke. Her soft sure fluctuations of sound and the look in her eyes had arrested Natsuki's life. Nastuki shook her head and lay back in the flowers.

"It's madness."

There were two people in Fuuka that were notorious for their love affairs. Even the men in the village weren't as infamous as the two young and restless daughters of the two most important chieftesses. But the relationship between the two was something different and special. There was Natsuki who fascinated everyone and she took that traded it on all the people in Fuuka especially the women. And there was Miyu, a more important woman in the village, though, still a shadow in the unpredictable storm cloud that was Natsuki. What bonded them was that Natsuki saw a light in Miyu and her way and did everything to protect that light from the unoriginal fools of the world, while Miyu saw that Natsuki was a master of her own kingdom and locked away her soul.

. . . and Miyu was someone who saw everything in everyone. She'd never seen such an iron door as the one Natsuki used to shield herself from everyone. It was the same original thing that Miyu would die to protect.

As for their love affairs, both had different systems by which each love affair would go. The result was always the same. The women exploded like bombs, one way or another. For Natsuki, at the end of each love affair she would smile the way she always did. The way that would make her women jump and go off in outrage. Natsuki and women were like a volcano in a tunnel and Natsuki would be the only one to make it out alive, smiling.

Things were different for Miyu. Her affairs were long and painful and at the end, the weakest would go insane and the strongest would flee the village. The problem was that Miyu always fell in love and it was that magic that would run from her to them and make them crazy when Natsuki's was just raw burning passion.

In the end Miyu would just find out that these women were all too controlling, too suffocating of her light.

Everyone in the village of course, only saw the failures of Miyu's relationship and how her women were affected and they had begun to get worried. They began to think Miyu was some smiting God who drove its victims insane.

Natsuki knew this rumour, but that thought just made Miyu's light grow stronger in her eyes. She was God. And Natsuki was a God. And together they rocked the earth beneath them.

Obviously there were also people who wanted Miyu dead. She was the future leader. It came with the job description.

For this reason Miyu only had a few friends. Nao, her sister, Natsuki and Chie.

Chie was a spy. Natsuki's spy. They had a story different story. One between a woman who was fancied a God and the shadow that was Chie. Somewhere along the line Chie tied her life to Natsuki's.

Natsuki wasn't thinking of Chie at that moment in the flowers. Natsuki was also not thinking about something Miyu said once to her. She should've remembered it, but she didn't.

Natsuki had said huskily, "Nothing in this world will tear you and I apart."

Miyu had blinked slowly and smiled a smile reserved only for Natsuki and replied, "A lover will rip our heavens from us, Natsuki."

Natsuki didn't think of that while she looked at the stars. She thought of only one thing, one woman.

And to the stars she whispered, "I kept my heart for her alone."