It was only the first official day, Monday morning and Shiori already decided that she hated everything and everyone with a passion. If they were going to be moving to this town, why couldn't they have done so earlier? Why wait until the day before school started to settle in? Shiori grumbled to herself as she pushed herself up on her bed, glaring at the rising sun peering in through the window.

It was still early in the morning, she'd never been a morning person, and it was Monday morning of all things. The least Stupid Takahiro could have done, if he was so intent on them moving out here, was have them move sooner.

She barely had any time to adjust to her new surroundings, and the tour that Ayaka had given them last night had been brief. Not that there was a whole lot in the town to see. And already she was being dragged off to a new school.

She hated it.

Just to be difficult, Shiori made sure to take her time getting dressed and ready, going as slow as she felt despite the numerous knocks and attempts to get her attention from Takahiro on the other side of her door. Maybe if she was slow enough, she could make them late to class. That'd be good. He'd have to take the walk of shame of entering the classroom late on his first day.

But so would she. It wasn't necessary worth it if she had to deal with it too.

It was his fault she was here, anyway. She had been perfectly fine before, was perfectly happy. If he had left her alone, hadn't been so obsessive, hadn't been so… so… possessive… she wouldn't have to be here. She would be at home. Her home, with her real family, not here with him. She could have still been with her happiness. Be where she felt she belonged.

She'd been happy, for the first time since she could remember, she had been happy with her life.

But then Takahiro had to ruin it all.

Shiori felt the bitterness rising up in her throat, engulfing her mouth with it's awful flavor as her fingers trembled while trying to tie the laces of her shoes. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

Her breathing growing heavy, she forced herself to calm down before the dizzying sensation in her head made her crumble. She had to stay calm. She wasn't broken, she wasn't damaged or traumatized or anything else the therapists, the doctors, her 'family' suggested she was. She wasn't brainwashed, she hadn't been manipulated or was being groomed by an 'unstable delinquent' or any of the things that they tried to say.

She was perfectly fine. She had been perfectly fine and healthy until they took her away from her castle.

"Shiori, if you don't hurry up, you're going to miss breakfast," Takahiro called out from the other side of the door after a knock. "You don't want to start the day off with an empty stomach, do you?"

Closing her eyes tightly, Shiori forced herself to remain calm, slowly counting as far as she could until she could feel the fire within her die down. One hundred… ninety-nine… ninety-eight

When she felt her body relax by the time she hit seventy-five, she quickly finished up in her room, grabbing her black and green hoodie and slipping it on. The clothing had been made for a teenager and not a child, after all it had belonged to Kaede, so it was especially large on her. But she didn't care. It was the only thing she'd been able to keep from her castle.

Closing her eyes once again, she breathed deeply into the fabric. The scent wasn't there anymore, any traces of Kaede's presence in the clothing was gone, having been washed out over the year. She felt her chest clench at the thought of it. But, no, it was still hers, so long as Shiori had it and wore it, she could at least pretend that Kaede was with her every second of the day. She would fight Takahiro tooth and nail if he tried to take it from her like he and everyone else had with anything else that could remind her of the young teen.

Grabbing her backpack, Shiori took a deep breath before pushing her door open with all her might, hoping in her heart that she might smack Takahiro in the face with it. But, he had reacted quickly enough to evade the hard wood to his nose.

But he was smiling and it was that big dumb smile with so much warmth and love that she hated seeing on him of all people. What gave him the right to look at her like that, to be so happy. She wanted to smack it off his face.

"Come on, I made us some toast and they have your favorite cereal down there," he said, still smiling and even offering a hand out to her like she needed to hold his hand just to go down a few flights of stairs. She didn't take his hand, but she did follow him down to the main floor.

She was only going with him because she was hungry.

As they ate in relative silence, she saw Ayaka over in the lounge, fiddling with an IPod or something as she munched on some breakfast bar. Honestly, Shiori wasn't sure how to feel about the young teenager. In some ways she reminded her of Kaede—they both had a rebellious spirit about them—but Kaede had been cautious and careful where it mattered, she knew how to control a situation while Ayaka just seemed like an oblivious idiot.

She wanted to see Kaede again, there wasn't a moment that went by that she didn't want to see her again. But she couldn't. Takahiro made sure of that.

No, she shouldn't think of that, whenever she thought of that, she felt awful, she felt a vile substance filling her veins, her heart pumping a putrid poison throughout her. But it was hard not to, it was hard not to let her thoughts slip to Kaede, of the things they had done and what they could have had.

She missed her so much. Kaede was her family, not Takahiro, or all those other people they were sent off to, filthy and dirty adults who wanted as much to do with the siblings as Shiori wanted to do with them.

Her saving grace that morning was that Takahiro was, thankfully, not pressing her for a conversation as much as he sometimes did as they ate. He gave her more time of peace as he had opted to do the dishes when they had finished, scrubbing them clean while there was still some time to kill before they headed out. Ayaka made a few attempt to start up some chatter with Shiori, but was ignored.

As they were heading for the door after Takahiro had placed the dishes in the drying rack, her brother stopped her and handed her a small wrapped bento box. "For lunch," he said, and Shiori had half the mind to just toss it in the trash right then and there. But, no, she needed to eat lunch and didn't have any money on hand for the cafeteria. She'd stomach whatever junk her brother made.

Ayaka made some cutesy noise at that and the three of them headed out of the dorm building.

"What happened to Hamamoto-senpai?" he asked as Ayaka closed the door behind them, apparently she was going to walk them to school and give them a tour of the building or something. "I didn't see her at all this morning, or the other student, either."

"Ah, Emi-chan leaves for school really early on Mondays, and Nagisa-kun has morning training so he's usually gone before the rest of us," Ayaka explained as they started walking, swinging her arms at her side and humming like she didn't have any care in the world. "I'm sure you might end up walking to or from school with one of them now and then, but with our schedules all being so different, its not too often we leave at the same time."

"I, I see," God that stammer of his was so dumb, Shiori wanted to roll her eyes as she trailed behind the older two. From off to the side she saw some adults coughing and sneezing behind their masks and she flinched away, not wanting to catch whatever virus was going around.

"I think you only have one class this year for your grade, Shiori-chan, probably pretty small, too, so you don't have to worry about being around so many people," Ayaka turned so she could face the girl as she talked.

Said girl promptly looked away, not even bothering to give her a response.

But the bubbly teen just laughed, "Ouch, man you could give Emi-chan a run for her money in the cold shoulder department," she joked rubbing at her chest as though she had been given a wound to the heart.

From that point on, Shiori mostly just tuned out her brother and Ayaka. Following them in silence as she just watched their surroundings.

She'd give Takahiro this; he didn't chose that bad of a town for them to be imprisoned in. She'd always been uncomfortable in the city, all the cars and people, it terrified her to some degree. The claustrophobic sensation, the thought that she'd get lost in a crowd and never find her way back, drowning in the sea of people, it made her too scared to even leave the apartment by herself.

Shizukana was different from the city. It was smaller, more spacious, more room to breathe. She could walk and not feel like she was lost, not feel the webbing of anxiety wrap around her, she didn't feel confined

Did she want to go back to the city? Of course, that's where her home was, that's where the people that mattered to her were. But if she could, she wouldn't be against the idea of convincing them to move out to this town.

So long as she was with them, so long as she could be with Kaede, she was fine no matter where she lived.

No, she was thinking of her again, those whimsical, wanting thoughts, happy memories given a bitter taste. She didn't need this, not this awful feeling so early into the day.

Forcing herself to distract her mind from those thoughts, Shiori switched gears to absentmindedly listen to her brother and Ayaka talk and the chatter of people around them as they kept walking. A few other students passed them, walking alone or in groups, chatting about this and that. Most people were on bikes or on foot, there were hardly any cars that drove past them.

They reached the gates of the school with a bit of time to spare before classes began.

Ayaka flashed the two siblings a dazzling smile as she adjusted her hold on her bag. "Well, here we are. Grade schoolers are on the first floor, middle schoolers are on the second floor, and you can find me and Emi-chan on the third floor with the other high schoolers," she explained as she began listing off her fingers. "If you need to visit your teachers, the faculty office is located on the second floor, nurses office is on the first floor—Umemoto-sensei can be a little strange though so be warned. I'll try and hit you guys up during break to see how you're doing. Do you need help finding your classrooms?"

Eying the students warily, kids ranging from all sorts of ages wearing similar uniforms—save for the grade schoolers who didn't have a uniform, Takahiro gave a shy nod. "No, I think we can manage from here. But, thank you."

"Well, if you ever need help, I'm classroom 1-2, it's the room right next to the stairs on the right, you can't miss it," Ayaka said with that smile of hers still in place. "Good luck on your first day you two!"

After she left, it was time for them to get to their own classes. Takahiro insisted on walking Shiori to her room, despite her refusals. Thankfully it wasn't hard to find her own class of fourth year students in the grade school division.

When he left, she felt like she could breathe again.

Ayaka hadn't been wrong when she suggested the class would be small. Even though there was still some time left before class started, there weren't a whole lot of kids, probably a dozen or so. Most of them were talking avidly with each other, and she realized that it was because they all knew who each other was. They grew up with one another and had been friends since probably diapers. She was the only one who was new, the only unfamiliar face in this room.

It was hard to breathe again,

A few kids looked up at her with curious eyes as Shiori she tried to find a desk to sit at, and she was sure that there were a few whispering to each other about her.

Taking a deep breath and counting down from a hundred again, Shiori moved her way towards the back, finding an empty seat next to a boy who looked like he hadn't slept in years and forgot how to comb his hair. The boy only gave him a lazy glance before resting his head against his arms again.

A few more students tricked in followed by a tall young woman with a stack of papers cradled in her arms and a warm smile on her face. The children quickly found themselves to their desks and it was clear that class was starting.

"Good morning everyone, I hope you all had a good break," the woman greeted and the class returned her greeting in turn. "Some of you may recognize me, but for those of you who don't; I'm Kikuko Shimura, I do hope we all get along well for the year."

A lot of the students seemed happy to be having her for a teacher, not that Shiori could care. She did a brief little introduction and then turned it on to the class to introduce themselves and something they did over the break.

Considering most of the students probably knew each other since diapers, it was likely a formality more than anything. She started spacing out after the first few kids said their names, hand on her cheek and trying to at least look like she was interested as her classmates went on and on, slowly wrapping towards the back of the room.

She found out the boy next to her was Hitoshi Tanaka. He was pretty brief, just gave his name and sat back down. And when Shiori introduced herself, she did the same, not bothering to list anything she could tell the class, not that she had anything to say in the first place. It wasn't like 'I spent the break going to therapy sessions and being moved between relatives and foster homes' was something she wanted a class to know.

At least the teacher didn't seem to mind the lackluster introductions.

Classes went on, which the first hour or so was spent mostly with orientation and letting the class get to know each other and know what would be expected of them this year. When the chance arose for the other students, Shiori got swarmed by her classmates. All eager to meet the 'new kid', flooding her with questions about what the city was like and what her old schools were like until she felt her heart racing so hard it felt like it'd explode. She hated feeling surrounded like this, hated feeling jumped by others.

She didn't want to tell them what her life was like before coming to this town, what her old school was like, or any other personal question they asked. She had no intention of being their friend, so why did they want to know so much about her?

Once lunch came, Shiori took the first chance she got and got out of the classroom with her lunch box in hand before her classmates could start pressing her for more information.

It was only going to be a temporary escape, she'd have to go back before break ended, and now that she was out in the hall, she had to be careful she didn't run into Ayaka or even worse, Takahiro. No doubt Takahiro was going to be coming to get her to try and eat lunch with her, Ayaka too, probably. Maybe she could hide in the girls bathroom until break was over.

Nah, then she'd have to explain to the others why she was hiding and eating in the girls bathroom, and that wouldn't prevent her from running into Ayaka or any other girls in their dorm building.

Grumbling, Shiori just shuffled down the hall, heading for the school doors.

It took a few minutes, but she was able to find a quiet corner outside at the side of the school building. There were a few bushes where she could hide behind if any of the two nuisances came out looking for her, but it was a peaceful spot. No kids of teenagers chatting and talking and bothering her.

Sitting down, Shiori let herself smile, feeling relaxed already as she pulled out the bento Takahiro had made her. As much as she wasn't looking forward to eating something he made—he might take that as a sign that she might be finally liking him—she was hungry and food was food.

She unwrapped the cloth and opened the box. Octopus sausage, some baby tomatoes and celery, rice, a couple of hard boiled eggs—when did he have time to boil an egg?—and a single cookie. Well, it didn't look bad, she'll give him that. She wasn't too surprised that he remembered that she liked eggs, though.

Taking out her chopsticks, Shiori got to eating, her mind wandering here and there. Thinking of the school (boring), the town (Not too awful), and the dorms (don't like). She wasn't sure what to think of the people themselves, yet, but so far she wasn't too fond of them. Maybe that could change, maybe she'll end up hating them all the more.

So long as they left her alone and didn't pry too much, Shiori could tolerate them.

She was eating in peace, munching on the eggs before moving to the rice. She could hear other kids chatting from the windows above, but no one seemed to notice her out here. However, she paused when she heard a bit of rustling from the some of the bushes farther ahead.

Was someone coming?

Shiori lowered her box of food and stared at the bush, glaring at it as though to silently usher whoever was out there with her glare.

Her expression eased up a bit when a dog stepped out. The dog was medium sized, pretty skinny and dirty looking so she assumed that it must have been a stray. There wasn't any collar on it, either, which added to that theory.

His head was low, but he was staring at her. Shiori offered a smile, feeling herself relax. "Hey, buddy," she whispered, trying not to scare the dog away. "You all alone? Here," she took one of the octopus sausages and held it out in her hand. The dog took a wary step, but not any further. Figures. Letting out a soft laugh, she tossed the piece of meat towards him. This time the dog drew closer, ducking his head down to eat up the small piece of meat.

"Like it?" Shiori asked and took out another of the sausages. "Come on, you look like you need them more than me." With each piece of meat, the dog drew slowly closer and closer to her. Not quite close enough for her to reach out and pet him, but, at least he was getting to eat something.

Eventually she had given him all of her octopus sausage, and when there was no more to give him, the dog looked at her with a tilted head and soft whine.

Shiori laughed, still smiling, "Sorry, buddy, I don't know if you can eat rice or celery," maybe she'd look that up when she got back to the dorm. It might be something nice to know if she got the chance to feed him again. Besides, she had to eat, too.

Surprisingly, the dog didn't run. He didn't draw any closer to Shiori, keeping a safe distance, but he didn't outright run. Keeping his eyes on the girl as she finished her lunch, or maybe just eyeing the food itself. His company was nice, she would admit. She always did want a dog, and even if he was a stray, it was nice to be able to be with one for a short minute.

"You're not to bad, now are you?" Shiori asked as the dog laid down in front of her, smiling as she ate some more of her rice. "Maybe you're just like me." Maybe she could find a kindred soul in this dog.

"Hey, you okay?"

Takahiro gave a light jump when Ayaka spoke up from behind him, turning away from his search among the grade schoolers to look at his dormmate. She was smiling as usual and leaning against the railings of the stairs.

"Oh, hi, Koyama-san," Takahiro greeted, turning back to look at the first floor students, there really weren't too many of them, which wasn't surprising given the small population of the town. Still, try as he might, he couldn't find the one he was looking for, his nervous fingers gripping his bento box tighter and tighter.

"Looking for Shiori-chan?"

Ayaka stretched her arms above her before descending the last of the steps to stand beside the boy, scanning the crowd much the same way and coming up empty.

Takahiro sighed, running a hand through his hair, "Is it that obvious?"

"I mean, kind of? What other reason would you have at staring at a bunch of little kids?"

He chuckled a little at that, a half-hearted laugh as he leaned against the stairs. "I don't think she's here," he said out loud, shaking his head, hopefully she didn't decide to go and skip already. She had made it a habit at their previous schools to just up and leave in the middle of the day. This was their first day at a new school, a fresh start for them both, he didn't want her to already be giving herself a bad reputation.

"She might have just gone to eat lunch by herself, or maybe she made a friend in her class and is eating with them," Ayaka threw an arm around his shoulder, tugging him into a lazy side hug, "You worry way too much, you know that?"

Of course he worried. "Someone has to," Takahiro muttered, shrugging her arm off of him. She wasn't down here, that much was obvious, so he started up the stairs back to the second floor for the middle schoolers. Hopefully Shiori was still in school, he could catch her on their way back to the dorms, make sure everything was okay, that she liked her new school well enough.

Ayaka was following behind him, a bounce in her steps. "Why do you say that?" she asked innocently.

Takahiro moved over to the side to make room for a couple of students coming down the stairs, not answering her question immediately, not until he had finished his ascent up the stairs did he voice an answer. "It's just… she and I, we haven't had the best of lives, she's had it rough, we both have," he didn't want to talk about it. He barely knew Ayaka, and these were wounds that were still plenty fresh, many of them still open and bleeding, others infected and pulsing.

The girl blinked, tilting her head to the side, strands of black hair falling over her face, "Is that why she looks so angry?"

He let out a bitter laugh, God he just wanted to sink into the Earth and disappear right now, he felt like shit, an awful churning sensation in his stomach and eating away at him. "She hates me," there was no use even trying to deny it. Ayaka would notice it soon enough, anyway. "She believes I took away her happiness, I took her away from the only happy life she knew, that's why she's angry."

"Well," Ayaka began and the look on her face said that she knew she was treading into dangerous territory, "did you?"

Takahiro didn't answer. But the silence was worth more words than he could say.

Maybe she would have been better off with Kaede. Maybe he should never have gotten involved. He'd been selfish, he went and took her away because of his own selfish needs and desires, he took her away so he could be happy, not caring that she had been happier there. Sure, it wasn't healthy, it wasn't good for her to be there, but…

He wanted to be happy again, and he had thought what he was doing was in the best interest of them both. But now she hated him. She probably always will, now. Was it worth it at all when this was the result?

A hand fell on his shoulder and he glanced up. Ayaka wasn't looking at him, she had a finger from her free hand scratching at her cheek, her other was on his shoulder and giving what he supposed was to be a comforting squeeze. "Look, Taka-kun, I know I don't know what went on in your past, don't know what's going on between you and your sister, I doubt I could even understand it. But," she offered him a smile, "I'm sure you and Shiori-chan can work past it. You're siblings, after all."

Takahiro smiled, but it was empty, tired. "Thanks," he said, there was no energy or even sincerity behind it. "But, you're right. There's no way you could understand."

He was being rude, and a part of him felt awful for being that way to someone who'd been nothing but nice, but he was just so tired. He didn't want to go through this today. So, gathering himself back up, he started walking away and leaving Ayaka behind in the hall.