XxxXThreeYearsLaterXxxXThreeYearsLaterXxxXThreeYearsLaterXxxX
'Tohru-chan! Let's go! We're going to be late!' yelled Uo as she snatched Tohru by the arm and dragged her off to the restaurant.
Tohru smiled. 'Okay! Sorry I was late. I had to take care of some business.'
'Don't worry about it! You know we could never get fired! The manager adores you waaaayy too much for that to happen!'
'Um..By the way, where's Hana-chan?' asked Tohru, looking around.
There was no sign of Hanajima anywhere. Usually she would walk with Uotani and Tohru to their job at the restaurant, where they were currently waitresses.
Uotani looked around as well. 'Hmph. Now that you mention it, she left me a message this morning. Something about a kid that she had to take care of or something..'
'A child?' asked Tohru, slowing her pace slightly. 'Maybe we should skip work and go help her!'
'Nah. We'll go after. I'm sure she's handling it fine on her own. And besides, you know her. She'll be okay.'
XxxXHanaPOVXxxXThreeHoursBeforeXxxXHanasPOVXxxXThreeHoursBeforeXxxX
From the moment that Hanajima woke up, she knew that she would be getting an unexpected visitor soon. She got dressed and waited patiently in her living room, listening for footsteps outside.
Finally, she heard them. They were not heavy footsteps, but those of a child, maybe a teenager. And a very stealthy teenager, at that. Whoever was outside the house, they were making sure that no average person could hear them approach. But of course, as we know, Hanajima is not exactly average.
Hanajima was beginning to become impatient. The person was looking around the house, trying to find an easy way in. And because they could not find one, they were beginning to get panicky. Hanajima could feel it in their waves. So she stood, walked swiftly to the door, and swung it open. In a very calm voice, she said, 'Can you please stop trying to find a way to break into my home? It would have been easier for you to knock on the door.'
Standing there, obviously frightened by Hanajima's sudden appearance, was a small - looking fourteen year old girl. She soon composed herself enough to look directly into Hanajima's eyes. And what Hana saw made her take an involuntary step backwards. Her eyes. Her eyes are exactly like his...
The girl spoke softly, as if she were scared, 'Hanajima Saki?'
Hanajima nodded slowly. Then the girl lost all composure and flew into Hana, almost making her lose her balance. 'Who are you, little one?' She asked the question, even though she was almost positive that she knew the answer. And although Hana had no clue how this was possible, she knew it was right.
The girl stopped sobbing long enough to look up at Hanajima again. 'S-Sohma Masaki.'