Chapter 2: Family Matters

Serena awoke the next morning to find that the house was empty except for Luna, who was curled up on the TV. Serena opened the fridge and started to take the milk out for her cereal when the phone rang. She picked up and pressed 'talk'. "Hello?" she asked as she held the phone with her shoulder to her ear and continued to make her breakfast. "Serena, it's Mom. Listen, you know how Sammy has been complaining about not having another boy in the house?" Serena rolled eyes as she continued to pour the milk into her Coco Puffs. "Yeah, how could I forget?" Her mother continued, "Well, we decided, as in your father and myself, that we would look into adopting a child." Serena dropped the milk, cereal box, and phone with a scream of fear.

"Yeah, they are getting another runt." Serena told her friend Amy Mizuno as they sat around Amy's bedroom, studying for a math test (it was hard to write that evil word). Amy looked over at Serena with thoughtful eyes, then turned back t her book. "You know, they said that they were looking into adopting a child. They didn't say that they were." Serena felt slightly cheered up at this thought and continued to try and understand her Algebra. "And besides," Amy added, "if they adopt an older boy, well…" she trailed off leaving Serena to throw a book at her, both of them laughing. "Amy, you're starting to sound like Raye." Amy brushed her blue hair out of her eyes. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Mr. And Mrs.Tsukino stepped out of their car and approached the orphanage, feeling slightly uncertain. "Hello, and welcome." The one worker said as the couple walked through the door, "How can I be of help to you today?" Mr.Tsukino spoke, "We were thinking of adopting a boy." The worker nodded his head, then walked over to a phone, dialed a number, spoke for a moment, then turned to the two adults. "Mrs. Moyokota will be with you in a moment." He then left, and Serena's parents sat down on two chairs while they waited. The room they were in wasn't that bad: it was full of toys which several small children were playing with, two doors that led to other rooms, and a fire exit.

After about three minutes a lady with a white jacket entered through one of the doors. She looked to be about fifty years old, graying hair, glasses and a slightly curved spine. She approached the Tsukinos and shook their hands, introducing herself. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Mrs. Moyokota, I own this orphanage, and how can I help you today?" Mrs.Tsukino stood and took charge, leaving her husband slightly out of place. "We were thinking of adopting a boy, you know, maybe an older boy." Mrs. Moyokota gave them a suspicious look, and she quickly added, "We already have two children, a 15 year old daughter and a 10 year old son." Moyokota nodded and led them into another room. In there were several boys, each around the age of eight to seventeen. "Each of these boys are good with younger children, have never caused any trouble, and have high grades in each subject we teach here." Mrs. Tsukino looked around, eying the younger boys with affection, while Mr.Tsukino looked nervously at he older boys, who were wrestling with each other.

"Hey! Let me go!" Everyone in the room looked over at the door as another boy was led in by the man they had seen earlier. This boy had ragged black hair that reached the small of his back, dark brown eyes, and a very tough look about him. Mrs. Moyokota sighed, "Koaru, what did you do this time?" The boy fought free of the mans grip and straightened his jacket. The man spoke for him. "He was throwing those blasted knives at the wall again! I just finished putting that new wallpaper up when WHOOSH! A fucing knife flew past my head and struck the center of a flower design!" Koaru smirked, "I meant to hit that stupid hat you were wearing, but you moved." The man shouted in fury and left the room, cursing under his breath. "Koaru," Mrs. Moyokota sighed, "when will you stop causing trouble? You're sixteen, and all you ever do is cause trouble." Koaru looked offended and shot back, "What! I do more then my share around here! I get groceries, clean up the play pit, cook supper three days a week, and do the laundry for the little brats!" Mrs.Tsukino seemed impressed at his workload, while Mr.Tsukino looked impressed at him standing up for himself. He leaned over to his wife, "Well, what do you think?" His wife nodded, "Yeah, he could look after Sammy and Serena, as well as help around the house and keep those two in line."

Serena walked into her house, feeling like her brain was about to explode. She had studied so hard that her brain felt heavier, which was giving her a headache. She walked into the kitchen, where her mom was cooking a ham, with Sammy sitting at the table, looking very excited. Serena sat next to Sammy and looked over at her mother. "So, how did the child search go?" Her mom looked over at her, smiling, and Serena's heart dropped. "We adopted a boy. I'm sure you will get along with him quite well."

Sammy jumped up out of his chair. "Serena! He is so cool!" Serena figured this boy was probably Sammy's age. She then heard footsteps and turned to look at the doorway into the living room, saw her new brother, and fell out of her chair with a loud bang. Sammy laughed at his sister, and her mother rushed over to help her up. Koaru sat down at the table across from Serena's empty chair and relaxed into it. Serena got back onto her chair and stared at the newcomer. He defied all description of boys; to her, he looked like a bad boy with an attitude problem, but also like a gentle, kind and caring gentleman. His hair needed a wash big time, but it was almost stylish the way it hung around his face and down his back. Serena knew one thing, she was definitely going to have to hook this guy up with one of her friends…except for Raye.