Sadly, this is more in line with my regular updating habits. My bad.

Buuuuut so many reviews and followers and we're only on chapter 4! I'm honestly so shocked and grateful, I hope y'all continue to enjoy.

This fanfic, in all honesty, is based more off of the game. And the game, as you know, is in Japanese - which I am not. I mostly assume what they're saying from some words I recognize. Suffice to say this chapter is mostly taken from the game's introduction, which may be a bit boring, but you do get to know my sweet cinnamon roll Vivi a bit more!

Thanks for the reviews, and please, keep it up!

~Crimrose

Chapter Four

Journey

It doesn't take me long to realize how grave a mistake I had made in thinking that I could make it to my new home by walking. Turns out I had greatly underestimated the time it would take to get there, and also how hot it is today – enough that my sensitivity to the heat begins to show itself almost immediately, with sweat beading across the top of my hairline, my face blotchy and red, and a slick sheen all over my body. The only solution I can think of is to just take the train the rest of the way, otherwise it would be a fifty-minute walk, and I'm on the verge of collapse only after ten. I didn't live too far from the station in the house Dad and I shared, so I swiftly alter my course, greedily gulping down the ice water I had thrown into my carry-on for such an event.

"Chii, don't push yourself," Juli scolds from his perch on my shoulder. "Take a break if you need to. The last thing you need right now is to collapse in the middle of the street…"

"It won't come to that," I promise him. "Besides, the train is basically only five more minutes away, then it will be smooth sailing once I'm sitting down."

He's silent for a few more of my deafening heartbeats, and then pipes up: "Do you think it's because you're having a panic attack?"

I nearly spit out my water. "What?! Of course not. What's there to panic about?"

If squirrels could shrug, he most definitely would have. "This whole situation. A new family, a new house, being surrounded by thirteen ravenous wolves…"

"Oh, Juli," I sigh. "You seem to keep forgetting that these people are my brothers now. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about; Miwa-san has every last faith in them, and I respect that." In truth, Juli has always could read me better than anyone else; that's why he's so insistent that I rethink this decision to move in with thirteen strangers. He can tell I'm hesitating, that I'm so nervous my legs are shaking on my way to the train station – and not just from the heat. I keep reassuring myself that everything will be fine, but I had always been nervous around new people; I find it hard to make friends, since I do have a few… quirks.

I shake my head, silvery hairs flying loose from my bun. It won't bring anything positive to the situation if all I do is think negatively about it. I slide the water bottle back into my bag as we approach the train station, the small structure sheltering me from the heat until it arrived. I'm immensely relieved to be out of the sun, and take a seat on one of the benches beside other kids my age, that go to my school judging from the uniform. Juli slips into the bag and hands me my wallet with my pass in it, and I send him down a silent thank you with a smile.

The train is coming; I hear it rattling against the tracks in the distance, but I still take a brief moment to myself. I lean my head back and allow a faint breeze to slip down the back of my shirt, cooling the sweat and easing some of the pain. The students beside me make a noise that sounds remotely startled when they see the back of my neck, but since I don't particularly mind what they see I don't move until the monstrous machine chugs to a stop in front of us. A stream of people exits and enters the sliding doors, schools of fish passing each other in the wide sea, and I'm lucky enough to get a spot by the window.

"The sun's so pretty when I feel like it's not trying to murder me," I whisper conspiratorially down to Juli.

"It is a nice day," he agrees. "A fine day for a battle, if I do say so myself."

I roll my eyes at that, but a small smile tugs at the corners of my mouth. Him being paranoid was just another way to show that he cared about me, the way he had since I was a little girl. Though I am perfectly capable of defending myself, the thought still warms my heart; there was a time when I was small and my father was away, when I felt particularly weak and like anything in the world could hurt me, but I don't feel that way anymore. After what happened eleven years ago, I made it certain that I would never be defenseless again.

The scenery is calm and serene from the height and distance the train is at, not permitting view of any people in the streets. The sunlight glitters against the glass of the skyscrapers, the stations, the arts buildings. It looks like the whitecaps of waves surging towards the train; with each chug it takes down the track the light changes and the crest comes closer. My heart lifts at the sight – I love sparkly things, even the nonsensical ones like water and snow in the sunlight. I'd never been to Kichijoji before, never ventured to that area of Tokyo, and had no idea what to expect aside from what everyone else said about it. If there was one thing I want to see after moving to that area, it's definitely the park; I have to make some time to wander around when I get there.

I spend the rest of the brief ride with my headphones in, and Juli relaxing in my bag, comforted by the smell of home that lingers in it. Except it's not home anymore; a new place is going to be, and that's perfectly fine. An odd thought strikes me: what will that place smell like? Will it be different than the scent of a house with only two people in it, and one who wasn't there half the time? An irrational question to most, but it makes perfect sense to me, and I'm stuck pondering over it until the train squeals to a stop and I get off to peruse the streets and try to find the place I'm looking for.

My music isn't blaring like it usually is, as I have to listen to Juli correct my path or make me switch my direction. The Killers are going off in my ears, and I have to physically restrain myself from singing along in my broken English, but I think the bass is giving me palpitations. Just as Juli corrects the turn I'm about to make from left to right, I swear I hear wailing in the distance, but decide that it could just be my headphones acting up again and dismiss it as nothing. I fiddle with the end of the wire closest to the plug, distracted by the fizzles, pops, and the music switching from both ears to one, and it's when that is happening that I finally hear it: "GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

Too late I whirl around to see what exactly is going on, then feel a harsh impact slam into the lower half of my body, sending me sprawling on the ground and Juli flying from my shoulder. Something falls on top of half of me, something hard and metal tangled with my legs, and all I hear and feel is groaning coming from the body that had collapsed on me. Once I recognize that it was indeed a person that had come crashing at me, I immediately bolt upright and examine the scene around me to discover that it was a kid, one that couldn't be older than ten.

"Are you okay?" I demanded, carefully checking his body for any serious injuries. "Tell me if anything hurts. Does your head feel okay? How many fingers am I holding up?"

"I'm okay," he murmurs dazedly, his head flopping from side to side, leaving his pale pink bob to swish around his face. "Just a little dizzy. How about you, Onee-chan? I'm sorry I crashed into you…"

I shake my head, my shoulders sagging with relief that he hadn't been hurt. The hard piece of metal trapping my legs to the ground was a bright red bicycle, the back wheel still spinning menacingly from the motion, and I gently pry it off of my legs, being careful not to accidentally wreck it. Just as I moved a little, the boy gasped and his eyebrows creased with concern. "Onee-chan, you're hurt!"

"It's just a scratch," I tell him with a smile. "Nothing to worry about. Now, are you all by yourself? Your parents must be worried about you, especially if they heard you yell."

He shakes his head, and the fierce look in his soft brown eyes, so much more mature than he otherwise looked, almost made me laugh. I'd never seen a kid look so determined about something. "I'm here with Ma-kun! I'm sure he can make your knee feel better!"

"Ma-kun?" I repeat in confusion, wondering if it's his stepdad or something since he used his first name, and the sound of footsteps behind me made us both look back to see a man jogging lightly towards us.

"Wataru! This is why I told you to be careful," he scolds the child, who looks genuinely sheepish and a bit upset. "I'm so sorry about that," he says as he kneels down beside me, his knees cracking when he bends his legs like my father's did sometimes. "How bad does it hurt?"

Since I don't want there to be any hard feelings, especially not with a poor kid who is just as much the victim as I am, I wave my hands in front of me in dismissal. "Oh, not at all! I barely even feel it. And it's perfectly alright; it was just an accident."

"Ma-kun is a doctor!" The child tells me, both with pride and stubbornness. "So you should let him take a look at you!"

"I'm just a paediatrician," he elaborates for me with a modest shrug of his shoulders. "But you really should let me take a look; it could get infected if you leave it."

I hesitate, even though Juli has recovered from the scuffle as well and is urging me to let him so that it won't get any worse. But I seriously believe it's not a big deal, and I don't want to trouble them anymore. Besides, 'Ma-kun' was staring at me with such intensity in his eyes much like those of his companion, a deep brown that was a bit concealed by his fluffy cocoa bangs dusting his brows. It's making me incredibly unsettled, and while his voice is deep and soothing, typical of a doctor for children I suppose, it still has a tone of urgency that almost makes me feel like I'm being scolded. Begrudgingly and with a slight heating of my cheeks, I lift up my leg to proffer to him to allow him to examine my knee.

It does look intimidating from afar, an angry path of red and torn skin with bits of gravel and dirt stuck in it, and the child – Wataru, I heard the man call him – looks close to anxious tears. I don't want him to start crying or feel any worse than he surely does despite this all just being one big kerfuffle, so I smile at him as widely as I can, showing that it doesn't hurt at all. He grins back at me, his wide mouth stretching into an adorable genuine grin, but it wavers when I flinch a little as 'Ma-kun's' hand lightly touches my leg, his fingers cold despite the heat. I'm tempted to laugh; of course his hands are cold. Despite that he's still dressed pretty heavily considering the weather, with a knit sweater over a cardigan and button-down with slacks. Jesus. And I had thought I was dying out here. But he doesn't seem to be sweating, but is rather staring at my minor injury with unwavering concentration that makes me unable to look at him any longer.

"Well, good news, miss," he says as he summons up a smile, and I have to cough to try not to giggle at his referral. "I think you're going to live. We just have to get it cleaned up a little is all." Naturally he has the materials on him, using a soft handkerchief and a bottle of water to gently scrape the dirt and grime out of the wound. As a finishing touch he tops it all off with a bandage covered with cartoon bunnies in pastel colours and a smile that matched the sun beaming down on the earth. "All better! Is there anything else that hurts?"

"No!" I say quickly, both because it's true and because I don't want to take up any more of their time. "No, this is much more than enough. Thank you so much."

"It's no trouble at all," he says gently, proffering his hand. I stare at it like some google-eyed amphibian for a few seconds, wondering what he wants to do, until I realize he's trying to help me up. Embarrassed, I take it and am struck by the ease with which he pulls all of my weight up for me – I didn't have to compensate at all. "What do you say, Wataru?"

The child runs up to his side and the man places a hand on his head comfortingly, even though he was still smiling at me; it was like a gesture he did without thinking, so natural and automatic. "I'm sorry, onee-chan." He bowed respectfully, his fluffy hair covering his face, and I'm taken aback by how polite and adorable he is. What a good kid.

"I'm just glad you're alright," I tell him honestly, retrieving his bike off of the ground and adjusting it to face him. "And that your bike is unhurt! Besides, it is my fault, as well – I should have been paying more attention."

"No, no, it really isn't! I'll be more careful from now on!" He beams at me, a wide toothy grin that's slightly crooked like his companion's in the corners of his mouth. "I know! I'll give you something special to say I'm sorry!" He rummages in his pocket for a moment, and I crouch down to his eye-level as his hand emerges in a closed fist. Curious and touched by his sincerity, so genuine for someone so young, I extend my hand and he drops a wrapped candy in it, the image on it boasting a strawberry. "Some of my favourite candy!"

I want to give it back to him, hesitant to take something he must love so much, but Ma-kun gently pats his head as the young one goes to wrap his arms around his neck. "That was very good of you, Wataru."

Wataru giggles in response. "Thank you! Look, I made onee-chan smile!"

This is getting a bit awkward for me to keep sticking around – not to mention they, as in my new brothers, were expecting me at the house. So I widen my grin and stand up to my full height, taller than Wataru by a fair amount yet significantly shorter than Ma-kun, and give a cheerful wave. "Thank you so much for your help – and the candy – and sorry again about the accident. Have a good day, guys."

"You as well." Ma-kun's smile is gentle and completely at ease as he takes Wataru by the hand and the handlebars of the bike in his free one.

"Bye bye, onee-chan!" Wataru calls to me from a distance, his wave energetic and enthusiastic. I smile at him again before ripping out my headphones and stuffing them in my pocket, wary of another incident.

"That was odd," Juli grunts from my shoulder, then he looks to the candy in my hand. "Ooh, strawberry is one of my favourites!"

"You can have it," I say, holding it up to him on my shoulder after unwrapping it. Naturally candy and the like is massively unhealthy for animals, especially the smaller ones, but not once had he gotten sick after eating something like that even without my permission, as he often did when I was young. That isn't to say that I believed it can never happen, so if he wants to eat anything like that, I try to keep it at a minimum. Juli is a perfectly healthy weight for a squirrel, a whopping four-hundred and some grams, so I figure a little bit of sweets once in a while won't kill him.

I throw back my shoulders to crack my back, aching a bit from the tumble. My hair had become even more loose, so I readjust it as I keep walking, desperate to keep it away from my neck. No doubt was it going to wind up burned this year, with even more freckles than I already have. I find myself envious of the young boy I'd literally crashed into and his clear, youthful complexion and cream-coloured skin. He and Ma-kun have that as a shared trait, and I know for certain that they must be related somehow, even if they did seem far apart in age. The pair of them were adorable, in different ways of course, and I find myself mysteriously flushed – and not from the heat. There's something about mature guys, ones that seem like they can handle themselves, that appeals to me. I appreciate people who don't need to have someone to rely on all the time, even if I don't mind mothering people despite how they may think it annoying. It was nice to be taken care of.

I glance down at my knees in motion as I walk, spot the colourful latex bandage, and smile. It'd be nice if I get to see them again someday.

"Don't eat all of it at once," I say to Juli, who rolls his eyes – his sass always comes in abundance.

"I know that much, Chii." He glances at the map over my shoulder, retrieved from my little accident. "I think you just keep going straight from here on. We should be there in only a few more minutes."

I let out a low whistle. "Taking the train really was a good idea. I'll be taking it to school from now on, so this was good practise." A frustrated breath escapes my mouth without my full intention, ruffling my bangs. "There'll be a lot more people on weekday mornings, though."

"I'm sure you'll live. It's just infuriating to know that I can't be there to protect you if you have some run-in with a lech." His growls reverberate through my shoulder, and I'm laughing quietly before I can help it. "It's not even remotely funny! You'll have enough wolves to deal with in your life in a matter of minutes."

He's exaggerating, I know, and keeping that in mind is what's helping me remain surprisingly calm as I make my way down the street. I've definitely reached a more residential area, both sides of the road framed by light cookie-cutter houses surrounded by fences or concrete barriers, and I wonder if that's what my new home looks like. I imagine that it could potentially be a bit bigger, since there are thirteen people living there and all…

Thirteen. It's still hard to wrap my head around. That's definitely going to take some getting used to.

"Is your knee really alright?" Juli asks, concern coating his high-pitched voice.

"Of course," I tell him. "It was a teeny-tiny scrape. They really didn't have to make such a big deal out of it."

"You didn't seem like you minded all that much."

A smug grin contorts my features as I shrug, earning a roll of his eyes. I have yet to run into anyone else down this street, which is pretty surprising considering the amount of houses here. Just as I'm thinking this, I see three figures in the distance, one towering over the other two. Juli makes a noise of awe. "Aren't they wearing the uniform of that super fancy high school?"

"Bright Centrair," I respond, squinting against the light of the sun. The uniforms Juli's referring to are of one of the best private schools around, though I personally don't see the difference between public and private schools. The uniforms, however, are far fancier than mine, complete with crisp white blazers with deep blue lapels, striped ties, and pressed grey plaid bottoms. Altogether they make the students look incredibly put-together and respectful, whereas multiple students at Hinode make alterations to their uniforms since the dress code is pretty loose.

As I pass the group of people, two young ladies with perfectly styled hair and elegant, minimal makeup accompanied by a very good-looking guy with hair the colour of slate, I catch snippets of their conversation. The girls' voices are bordering on pleading, teasingly, while the boy is obviously trying to remain polite while at the same time escape their clutches. They seem to be asking him to accompany them somewhere, but he politely refuses.

"I have something important to do at home," he tells them serenely, his voice deep and soothing. "Sorry. We can do it some other time?"

"Ugh," one of the girls says, drawing out the sound until it makes me mildly annoyed to even be privy to it. "You're always doing something, Iori. I guess that's a prince for you, huh?"

Her companion nods enthusiastically, and by this point I'm walking right past them. I catch the boy's eye and smile, not wanting him to think I'm rude and eavesdropping, and he returns the gesture. "That's right! Great at sports, excellent grades, not to mention good-looking…"

Their voices are fading away now, and I can't help but think that the qualities the one student had mentioned were the ones I found cropped up most often in animes and dramas to describe someone as perfect. I purse my lips, thinking the only thing I had in common with them was better-than-average grades, and decide that it doesn't really matter. I'm a strong believer in the idea that a person's actions form their character, though whether something a person does can be called 'good' or 'bad' is pretty subjective.

"It's not the situation, it's how you react to it," I mutter to myself, and while he seems against doing so, Juli nods in agreement.

"I guess that's what's keeping you so calm right now, Chi," he says, his whiskers twitching with apprehension. "Man, that was irritating to listen to. My ears are more sensitive than yours, you know. Listening to girls going crazy over a guy… ridiculous."

"I think it's pretty normal," I laugh. I rarely see him so pessimistic about one person. "I do it, too."

"Yes, but you do it quietly. Mahoko on the other hand…"

"Oh, please." The spaces between the houses are widening at this point, the street leading to more private residential areas. Now I'm getting nervous; the houses are growing more glamorous and spectacular, with immaculate gardens and ultra-modern exteriors made up of chic angels and large windows. My house – old house – was made in the same image, though vastly downplayed and humbled. It set me on edge to be in a neighbourhood so extravagant and boasting of riches, since I'm hardly used to it. As that's flying through my mind, causing my legs to get a bit shaky and my body to start overheating again, Juli grabs my attention by gently touching a clawed hand to my cheek.

"I think it's the next building on your right, Chii," he tells me, yet all I can see of the house he's talking about is a tall fence made up of smooth, polished dark wood. I click my teeth together, panicked. My heart immediately kicks into overdrive, my hands sweating so much the map crumples from their touch, damp and useless. I try to take deep breaths, wanting to make a good impression and not seem like I'd just ran a marathon, but it does little to help since my throat has closed up. I take the few steps leading to the opening in the fence and see my new home towering above me, and all I can think is how out of place I already feel without having even met a single one of my new brothers.

So I lied a lil' bit last chapter - she hasn't met the brothers just yet (all of them, anyway). Next chapter for sure, though! I have the tendency to go on and on, which is how some chapters in Cross Ice end up being 30,000 words. I'm trying to prevent that from happening here.

Stay tuned for next time, and I'm gonna try drawing a cover with my absolutely shotty art - just to give y'all an idea of what my girl looks like!